The life of Jushiro
by KageRaion
Summary: Over 2000 years ago, the heir to the Ukitake family was born. Follow Jushiro through his life from a young child to a Soul Reaper in-training to the rank of captain.
1. 14th son and the fallen god

It was a cold winter day and the head of the Ukitake family, Jūsanrō was on his way home after a meeting with the head of another low ranked aristocratic clan.

It was then he saw Emi, his younger sister come running.

"Brother!"

"What's the matter Emi?"

"The... the baby is coming"

Jūsanrō's eyes widened a bit before he started to run towards their home, his sister right behind him.

"Why didn't you send a message to me earlier?"

"Akemi said she didn't want to disturb your meeting since it was important and she wasn't in that much pain.

-But before we knew it, everything went really fast"

"I see"

They hurried home and when they opened the door, they hear wails coming from down a hallway.

Jūsanrō quickly made his way down the hall to the bedroom were he found his wife and a few servants.

"Akemi..."

His wife looked tired but also very happy as she waved at him to come closer.

"Come meet our son"

He knelt next to the bed and kissed her sweaty forehead before looking down at their son.

He had black hair like his father and the hazel brown eyes of his mother.

"Isn't he beautiful, dear?"

"He is"

Jūsanrō reached out and gently placed a hand on the baby's head.

"I guess he's a Jūshirō then since we're following the traditions, said Akemi"

"Yes.

-Welcome Jūshirō Ukitake, my son and heir"

The baby let out a cooing noise which made his father smile proudly.

 _ **A while later.**_

There was a knock on the door and two elderly men came in.

"Father, uncle"

Jūsanrō's father Jūjirō was the former head of the family and he was now serving as the family elder along with his younger brother.

"We heard that the new heir has been born"

"He has"

Jūsanrō gently picked up his son and walked over to his father.

"Father let me introduce my son, Jūshirō"

Jūjirō looked down at the baby as he looked up at his grandfather with curiosity.

After a moment, he nodded in approval.

"I have no doubt that he will grow up to be as strong as the rest of the men in our family"

"Thank you father"

Jūjirō smiled at his son before leaving along with his brother.

 _ **Jūshirō**_ _ **was a good baby. He only cried when he was hungry or needed to be changed.**_

 _ **His parents were happy about their son but things would soon change.**_

Jūshirō had turned three a couple of months back.

He had now been stuck in bed of a week since he was coughing badly and he had a high fever which worried his parents. His hair had also started to turn white.

"He doesn't seem to get better, said Jūsanrō"

"What should we do, Akemi asked"

"I'll call for the family doctor"

Akemi nodded and while her husband walked down the hall to send someone to get the doctor, she walked into their son's room and knelt by his bed, stroking his soft locks.

When her husband returned with the doctor, she stepped aside so he could examine their son.

They could see a serious look spread over his face after a while.

He then stood up and pulled the quilt back over the boy.

"May I speak with you two outside?"

"Of course"

All three walked out and the worried parents looked at the doctor.

"So what's wrong with our son, Jūsanrō asked"

"I'm afraid that he has developed a very serious lung disease, that's why he's coughing so badly"

"Can you do anything?"

"Sadly I can't. I meet one person with the same disease about two years ago and there is no cure for it.

-The disease is also... fatal"

Akemi started to cry into her husband's shoulder when she heard that.

"There has to be something you can do. How did he get it anyway?"

"That's what I'm wondering as well. I checked the young master the day after he was born and he showed no signs of being born with it"

Jūsanrō looked at the doctor and then at his crying wife"

"I won't accept this. My son will not die at this young age"

"My lord, everyone will tell you the same thing"

"It doesn't hurt to try. Jūshirō's life has just begun and I won't let it end here"

 _ **The next day, the couple took their son to every doctor they knew and everyone told them the same thing, their son was dying due to the disease.**_

"What should we do, Akemi asked"

"There is only one more thing I can think of"

"What is that?"

"Mimihagi"

"But dear..."

"It's the only thing left that I can think of.

-It's either trying to pray for our son's survival or we'll lose him"

Akemi nodded and they made their way to the outskirts of the 78th district of east Rukongai were they found a shirne.

They walked inside were Jūsanrō placed their son in front of them before they knelt and bowed.

"Mimihagi-sama please save our son. Please do something... anything"

A humanoid entity with a body shaped like an arm and a clenched right fist then appeared before them.

It had a single large eye on the back of the fist, wore a simple tunic and a large band encircled the area behind the fist.

This was Mimihagi, a falled god and the right hand of the Soul King.

" **Save him you say"**

"Yes. Please Mimihagi-sama"

Mimihagi remained silent as the large eye studied the dying child.

" **I shall grant your request. I will remove the child's sick lungs and take their place to help him survive.**

 **-But a word of warning"**

"What is it?"

" **While I will remove his sick lungs, he will still suffer from attacks from time to time. Especially if he's too worked up, too hot or cold"**

The couple looked at each other before Jūsanrō bowed his head.

"As long as he survives, we'll manage those times"

 **"Very well. I shall then take the place of the child's lungs. Once I've entered his body, take him home and let him rest until he wakes up"**

"Understood"

Mimihagi then started to glow before vanishing.

The couple then noticed that Jūshirō was breathing easier.

 _ **They then made their way home were**_ _ **Jūs**_ _ **an**_ _ **rō**_ _ **placed their son in his bed.**_

"Now we just have to wait until he wakes up like Mimihagi said"

A servant then appeared in the door"

"Lord Jūjirō wishes to see you, master"

"I'm coming"

Jūsanrō stood up, leaving his wife with their son while he went to his father's room.

"You wanted to see me father"

"I did.

-You went to see Mimihagi didn't you"

"We did"

"And the child?"

"Mimihagi agree to save him. It's residing within him now, keeping him alive"

"I see"

Jūjirō then turned to look at his son.

"In that case, I want you and your wife to produce another heir"

"What?!"

"There's no telling how long the boy will survive even with the powers of the fallen god within him.

-So I want you to have another child to take his place if that happens"

"Father! You're talking as if he would die any day"

"You never know"

Jūsanrō sighed and stood up.

"It's my son's birthright to become the next head of our family. Sure, my wife and I may have more children in the future but I won't take away that title from my son"

He then left the room, angered by his father's words.

He walked back to his son's room were his wife still was.

"What did you father want to see you about?"

"He told me that he wanted us to have another child and make that child the heir"

"Why?"

"He doesn't believe that Jūshirō will live that long even with Mimihagi's powers"

"So what did you say?"

"I told him that we may have more children but I would never give our son's birthright to another child.

-He will live long enough to grow old and have a family of his own, I'm sure of it"

"Let's hope you're right, dear"

 _ **A few days later.**_

Jūsanrō was away from the house for the day and Akemi hadn't left their son's side the entire morning.

As she sat on his bedside and stroke his hair, his eyes opened.

"Mommy"

Akemi had trouble holding back tears as she knelt down on the floor and hugged her son.

"How are you sweetie?"

"Okay"

"That's good"

She let go of him and called out to a servant that passed the room to send a message to her husband.

"Mommy why are you crying?"

"I'm just glad to see you're awake. You've been very sick sweetie but you're finally getting better"

"Sick?"

"Yes. Your dad and I were worried but it's alright now"

Akemi then sat down on the bed again and a while later, her husband appeared in the door.

"I got back as fast as I could. What happened?"

Akemi smiled and moved aside slightly so Jūsanrō could see his son's face.

"Hi daddy"

A big smile spread over Jūsanrō's face as he walked over to them and knelt down, placing a hand on his son's head.

 _ **They were relieved that their son had woken up like Mimihagi promised and as days passed, he got better until he was back up on his feet again.**_

 _Author's notes:_

 _The names of Jūshirō_ _'s grandfather means 12th son while his father's name means 13th son._

 _Seeing how_ _Jūshirō_ _'s name means 14th son, I made it into a tradition that the oldest is named after the generation they're born in._

 _I have no idea if Mimihagi can speak but since Pernida could and for the sake of this story, I made it able to speak._


	2. Big brother

_**A year had passed since Mimihagi saved J**_ _ **ūshirō's life.**_

 _ **After he had fully recovered, it was as if it that deadly illness never happened but his now white-hair was a reminder of it.**_

Jūsanrō was watching his uncle play with Jūshirō.

Despite his old age, Hiroshi was a very active man and unlike his older brother, he believed that his great nephew would live a long life thanks to Mimihagi.

 _ **"FlashBack"**_

Jūsanrō stood outside watching the night sky when Hiroshi came up to him.

"Oh uncle"

"Hello Jūsanrō. I didn't expect you to be out here"

"I just needed to clear my mind a bit after what father told me earlier today"

"About you having another child that will take the title of heir?"

"Yes. I can't believe he would even suggest something like that

-Jūshirō is his grandson and it's his birthright to become the next head of our family"

"That he is. But while I do understand why my brother said it, it's still harsh of him"

Hiroshi then placed a hand on his nephew's shoulder.

"Trust me Jūsanrō when I say that I believe your son will live to be at least 1000 if not more. After all, others have been in contact with the fallen god and lived for that long"

Jūsanrō couldn't help but smile. His uncle had always been one to reassure others, a fact he was grateful for.

He then looked at the sky again.

"I just hope dad will realize that soon"

"I will talk to him about this but though we may be the clan elders, it is you who are the clan head so you are the one to decide the heir and seeing how your son is the first born..."

"I will pick him no matter what. Even if we have other children"

 _ **"End FlashBack"**_

 _"Other children..."_

"They seem to be having fun"

Jūsanrō turned around and saw Akemi come towards him.

"How are feeling?"

"Better"

"That's good. But it must be easier this time seeing how you've been through it before"

"At least I know how to handle it this time"

The two then watched as Hiroshi picked up their son and held him up so the boy laughed.

"We should tell him the good news. We've kept it secret for a few days now"

"We should"

Hiroshi then came towards them, carrying Jūshirō on his shoulders.

"You two seem to have been having fun"

"We have. Great-uncle is fun to play with"

Hiroshi chuckled and placed the boy on the ground before ruffling his hair.

"I'm glad you had fun Jūshirō but now I have things to do"

"Okay"

Hiroshi smiled at him before he walked inside and Jūsanrō picked up his son.

"Are you feeling okay Jūshirō?"

"Yes father"

"That's good"

The couple hadn't told their son fully what happened a year ago since they decided to wait until he was older before explaining the things about Mimihagi.

For now they had just told him that he needed to be careful because the illness attack had made him a bit more sensitive.

"Sweetie, your dad and I have some news for you"

"What is it mommy?"

"You're going to be a big brother"

"Really?"

"Yes. In a few months, you'll have a little brother or sister"

 _ **During the months that followed, J**_ _ **ūshirō helped his parents get things ready for the arrival of his sibling.**_

It was about a week left until the baby was going to be born and Jūshirō had gotten sick.

"It's the first time in a year, said Akemi as her husband came into their room"

"I know but Mimihagi told us that this would happen"

He sat down next to her and placed his arm around her.

"At least its not fatal"

"You're right, dear. All he needs is to rest"

"Yes. He told me that he hopes he's well in time to meet his brother or sister"

Akemi giggled a bit.

"He's going to see him or her everyday so if he's still sick we'll just wait until he's better before introducing them"

"That's what I told him as well"

 _ **A week later,**_ _ **Jūs**_ _ **hi**_ _ **rō**_ _ **had recovered almost fully but he was still coughing a bit.**_

He was sitting on his bed with Hiroshi who was reading a book for him.

"Do you think they'll come today great-uncle?"

"By the way your mother has been feeling since yesterday I'd say yes"

The boy leaned a bit against his great-uncle before slightly looking up at him.

"Why did I have to be sick now?"

"Now now Jūshirō. A sickness is not something we can decide over. It happens when it happens.

-Besides, it has been a bit cold for the past week and since you're sensitive towards the cold, it was just a matter of time before this happen"

Jūshirō coughed slightly into a piece of fabric and Hiroshi was happy that there wasn't any blood when he removed it.

He then stroke the boy's white locks.

"You'll be able to meet your little brother or sister as soon as you get better.

-And I'd say it will be either tomorrow or the day after that since you're barely coughing anymore"

"You think so?"

"I do"

They then kept reading the book until Jūshirō feel asleep. Hiroshi gently laid him down and pulled the quilt up a bit before quietly walking out.

"Uncle"

He turned his head to the side and saw Jūsanrō come towards him.

"Is he sleeping?"

"Yes. I read that book to him and after a while, he feel asleep"

"I see"

"How's your wife?"

Hiroshi saw a smile spread across his nephew's face.

"Both she and our new son is doing well"

"So it's another boy then?"

"Yes. I came to tell Jūshirō but I'll wait until he wakes up"

"That's a good idea.

-Have you told my brother yet?"

"Not yet. I'm afraid he'll say that thing about changing the heir again"

"How about I tell him then"

"Thank you uncle"

 _ **Hiroshi smiled and walked down the hall to his brother's room.**_

"The child has been born"

"I see.

-What is it?"

"Another boy"

"Good. Then the family will have a strong heir"

"Brother! Jūshirō is the heir and you know it as much as I do"

"But with that illness of his, he won't be strong enough to lead this family"

"You don't know that yet. The boy is only four years old, wait until he's become a teen before you say that he's not strong enough"

Jūjirō sighed.

"Fine.

-You're right brother. I shouldn't have said that before knowing how strong that boy really is"

"That's right"

 _ **Two days later,**_ _ **Jūs**_ _ **hi**_ _ **rō**_ _ **was fully recovered and couldn't wait to meet his brother.**_

Jūsanrō carried his son through the house to the room he shared with his wife.

"You have to be quiet now. Okay Jūshirō"

"Okay"

He smiled and opened the door to the room were Akemi was sitting in the bed with the baby in her arms.

"Mommy"

Akemi smiled at her son as they got closer.

"Jūshirō meet your little brother"

Jūshirō looked at the baby who was sleeping. His hair was black just like their fahter and like his had once been.

"What's his name?"

"His name is Tatsuya"

"Tatsuya..."

Jūshirō placed a finger on his brother's hand and the baby grabbed it before his eyes opened to reveal a grey color similar to their father.

"Hi Tatsuya.

-I'm Jūshirō, your big brother"


	3. Lost

_**Two years after Tatsuya came, the family welcomed another son who they named Ryouta and a year after him, the first daughter in the family was born and was given the name Izumi.**_

Jūshirō was now seven years old and loved his siblings dearly.

He helped his parents a lot with keeping an eye on them since both Tatsuya and Ryouta were wild little boys.

But not long after Izumi's birth, Jūjirō fell ill.

"Will your father be alright, Akemi asked"

"The doctor says that this came out of nowhere and they're not sure if he will recover"

"Is it because of his age?"

Jūsanrō nodded and sighed.

"Dad is not as young as he thinks he is and his health has not been the best the past years.

-I guess it was only a matter of time before this happened"

Akemi saw the sad look in her husband's eyes and kissed his cheek.

"Let's hope that your father recovers. The children would be so sad to lose their grandfather"

"You're right"

 _ **But**_ _ **Jū**_ _ **ji**_ _ **rō**_ _ **didn't get better.**_

Jūsanrō and Hiroshi walked out of his father's room along with the doctor.

"Thank you for everything you've done"

"Just doing my job, my lord"

The doctor bowed and left the two.

"I can't believe this, said Jūsanrō

-Father isn't going to make it"

Hiroshi looked at his nephew and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"It's hard for us all to believe"

"Uncle..."

"We should tell your family so the kids can say goodbye to their grandfather"

"You're right"

They walked through the house and out to the garden were everyone was. Jūshirō was next to his mother in the shade while his brothers were playing with Emi

When he saw his father, Jūshirō ran up to him.

"Father, Great-uncle"

"Hi there Juu"

Jūsanrō picked up his son and Jūshirō could see the sadness in his father's eyes.

"Is grandfather okay?"

Jūsanrō sighed and shook his head.

"I'm afraid your grandfather won't be with us for much longer"

"Why not?"

Hiroshi saw that Jūsanrō couldn't say it so he took his great-nephew from him.

"Your grandfather is very sick Jūshirō and he's not strong enough to fight it anymore"

"But I was very sick too and I'm better"

"But you are young and strong enough to fight when you get sick.

-Your grandfather is over 1000 years old and is not as strong as he once were"

The others then came up to them.

"We should go see him, Akemi said"

Her husband and his uncle agree and they walked inside.

"Brother, we brought Emi, Akemi and the kids"

Jūjirō looked up tiredly at his brother, his daughter, his son, daughter-in-law and grandkids.

"So... you told them..."

"They deserved to know father"

The elderly man nodded weakly before turning to Tatsuya and Ryouta.

"It's sad that I won't see you grow up more than this.

-I know you two will grow up to be strong like your father"

He knew the two were too young to understand what was going on but he wanted to tell them that anyway.

Akemi then knelt down so he could see Izumi.

"And you little Izumi, you will grow up to become a beautiful woman like your mother but also strong like your brothers"

The baby made a cooing noise which made her grandfather smile before he looked up at Jūshirō who still was in Hiroshi's arms.

Akemi took the other kids with her out of the room while Hiroshi knelt next to his brother.

"Jūshirō... don't be sad"

"But grandfather..."

"I know that I won't be here much longer but it's the circle of life. We're born, we live and we die. It was just a matter of time"

He reached up and placed a hand on the boy's head.

"I wish I could see you when you are older but I know that you will become a strong and kindhearted young man.

-And a great heir"

Tears flowed down Jūshirō's cheeks as he got off his great-uncle's lap and hugged his grandfather.

"I will miss you grandfather"

"I know my boy but I will always be in your heart"

Emi, Hiroshi and Jūsanrō watched and smiled a bit at the way Jūjirō spoke with the boy.

After Tatsuya was born and Hiroshi had that talk with his brother, Jūjirō had gotten closer with Jūshirō which made the whole family happy.

He had finally accepted that Jūshirō was strong enough to be called the family heir despite his illness and now, he was going to leave them before even seeing the boy take on the position.

The old man then turned to his children.

"Emi, I couldn't have asked for a better daughter than you. Despite not being born into our family, you embraced the Ukitake name with pride.

-Help your brother with his work as family head and help take care of your niece and nephews"

Tears ran down Emi's cheeks as she bowed her head.

"I promise father"

He then turned to Jūsanrō and Hiroshi.

"My son, stay strong for your family. Raise your sons and daughter to become just as strong as you and your wife. Keep on growing as clan head and become better than I ever was"

"I will father"

"My brother, I leave the heavy burden on clan elder to you and I'm sorry for that. But help my son when he's troubled for as long as you live"

"You have my word, big brother"

 _ **Jū**_ _ **ji**_ _ **rō**_ _ **passed away the next morning and the family took it very hard.**_

A couple of months later, Jūsanrō came home later than usual.

"Something the matter dear?"

"I came from a meeting with some other clan heads. As you know, a few of them works as Soul Reapers in the Seireitei and I decided to do the same"

"You're gonna become a Soul Reaper?"

"Yes. I have powerful spirit energy so all I need is to summon a Zanpakutō"

"Does this mean that we...?"

"Yes. We're moving to the Seireitei in a week so I can be closer to my work.

-But it's also a perfect and safe place for our children to grow up"

Akemi looked at her husband before nodding.

"You're right dear. Our children will grow up in a safer enviroment if we live in the Seireitei"

"I've also talked to a friend who works as a healer and he's assured me that he won't hesitate to help us if Jūshirō gets one of his worse attacks"

"That's good to know. Maybe living in the Seireitei will also help him get stronger so it doesn't happen that often"

"We just have to wait and see"

The two then walked into another room were Emi was playing with the kids.

"Children, we have something to tell you"

"What is it father, Jūshirō asked"

"I got a job in the Seireitei as a Soul Reaper and in a week, we'll be moving into a house there"

"Move?"

"That's right Tatsuya.

-It means that we will have a new home to live in"

"If it's big enough, you can all have your own rooms and you'll have a bigger garden to play in, said Akemi"

That seemed to get the kids attention the most and they all seemed a bit more exited to move.

 _ **A week later, the family moved into a bigger house in the Seireitei. On their grounds, among some trees they made a family grave were the ashes from**_ _ **Jū**_ _ **ji**_ _ **rō**_ _ **, his father and grandfather were buried.**_


	4. Seireitei

A couple of days after their move to the Seireitei, Jūsanrō came home after a long work day to find his oldest son sick, worse than normal.

"What happened Akemi?"

"He woke up with a slight fever and it got worse as the day went on"

Jūsanrō walked up to their son and felt his forehead, it was indeed a very high fever.

"It must have been from us having the front door open to carry in things when we moved. It was quite cold that day"

"I'll go tell a maid to get some cold water and a cloth so we can bring the fever down"

"Okay"

This was the first time since Jūshirō was three that he had a fever this high which worried his parents.

" _It's been four years since his condition was this bad"_

Akemi soon returned with a maid.

"Dear could you please talk with the boys. They don't seem to understand that their brother can't play with them right now"

"I'll see what I can do"

Jūsanrō got up and walked out of the room, down to the main room of the house were his sister and uncle were along with his younger sons and daughter.

"Daddy"

Tatsuya was quick to run up to their father who picked him up.

"Nii-san play"

"I'm afraid your brother can't play with you today Tatsuya"

"Why?"

"Your big brother is very sick and he needs to rest"

Tatsuya pouted but he seemed to understand that his brother wasn't well. He would have to get used to it since this illness would probably follow Jūshirō through his whole life.

"Don't worry Tatsuya, you can play with your big brother in a few days when he's better"

 _ **A few days past and while the fever did get lower,**_ _ **Jū**_ _ **shi**_ _ **rō**_ _ **was not recovering like the previous attacks of the illness.**_

Jūsanrō was walking through the Seireitei on his way home after his shift had ended.

It was then he ran into a man with his hair styled into a pompadour and he was chewing on a small stick.

"Kirinji-san I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to run into you"

Tenjirō Kirinji was a man who had been a Soul Reaper for a long time. Despite his attitude, he can be friendly and helpful.

"You seem to be in deep thoughts"

"It's my son sir. He's been sick for a couple of days and he's not recovering like he should"

"I see"

Kirinji took the stick out of his mouth for a moment before putting it back.

"Mind if I have a look at him?

-I am a healer after all"

"If there isn't to much trouble"

"Not at all"

So Jūsanrō led Kirinji to his home.

"Who's this brother, Emi asked"

"This is Tenjirō Kirinji and as you can see, he a Soul Reaper like me.

-I ran into him on my way home and he wanted to have a look at Jūshirō"

He then led Kirinji to his son's room were Akemi sat next to his bed.

"Kirinji this is my wife, Akemi.

-Dear, this is Tenjirō Kirinji"

"A pleasure to meet you Kirinji-san"

Kirinji nodded before walking over to her.

"How long has he been like this?"

"Almost a week now"

"And this is not the first time?"

"He's had these attacks since he was three but they've not been as bad as this since then"

"I see"

He placed his hands on the boy's chest and reiatsu glowed around them. After a while, he removed them and Jūshirō's breathing evened out.

"That should do it.

-Poor kid being this sick"

He then got up and grabbed the stick in his mouth.

"Give it a day or two then he should be fine"

"Thank you so much Kirinji, said Jūsanrō"

"It was nothing. I'm a healer after all"

The two then walked out of the room and to the front door.

"Ukitake"

"Yes sir"

"Your kid has been in contact with the fallen god hasn't he?"

"How did you...?"

"I felt the spirit energy from it inside his body now when I healed him.

-So what happened?"

Jūsanrō looked at him and sighed before explaining the situation to Kirinji.

"So that's why huh"

"It was the only way to save his life"

"I understand you but while the fallen god is a powerful being, there may come a day when its powers must be released"

"We know that"

"Good"

Kirinji then left.

He returned a couple of days later with a medicine he had created that would help Jūshirō during the worse attacks since it would calm the symptoms.

 _ **Years passed and by the time**_ _ **Jū**_ _ **shi**_ _ **rō**_ _ **was 12, he had gotten four more siblings.**_

 _ **The twins Kazuki and Kenta came when he was nine, Kenji two years after that and the youngest Ayame, the year after that.**_

Being the oldest out of all eight, Jūshirō helped out a lot with looking after his brothers and sisters which was a huge help to his parents and aunt.

This spring afternoon, his mother found him in his room, reading. But it was the look on his face that worried her.

"Something the matter sweetie? I thought you went with your brothers to play with some of the other kids in the area"

"I went with them but the other kids didn't want to play with me"

"Why?"

"Tatsuya had told them why I couldn't come a few days ago and they said they didn't want to play if I'm gonna get sick from it"

"Oh sweetie"

She placed her arms around him and kissed the top of his head.

"Don't listen to what they tell you.

-You can play with them as long as you don't overexert yourself"

"I tried to tell them but they didn't listen"

Akemi looked at her son a bit worried before she got an idea.

"Your aunt or I will talk with the parents to those kids when one of us pick up your brothers later. Okay?"

"Okay"

"Good."

Akemi then left since she heard Ayame cry and Jūshirō went back to his book.

Reading had become something he liked to do more and more but he still loved spending time with his siblings.

 _ **Akemi kept her promise and talked to the parents of the kids they played with and explained that while he did get sick easier that his brothers,**_ _ **Jū**_ _ **shi**_ _ **rō**_ _ **could still play with them as long as he doesn't overexert himself.**_

Jūshirō, Tatsuya and Ryouta were with Haru and Isamu who lived close to them.

They were playing tag.

"Got you big brother, said Tatsuya"

He ran away as Jūshirō turned around and ran after him. Once he had managed to tag Isamu, he stopped running to catch his breath.

"I'm gonna sit down for a while"

"Okay, said Ryouta"

Jūshirō walked over to the porch were the mother of Haru came over to him.

"You taking a break?"

"Yes. I just need to catch my breath a bit"

"Okay"

She smiled at him and Jūshirō smiled back before leaning against a pillar, watching his brothers run around with their friends.


	5. Meeting Yamamoto

_**A few years later, Akemi caught an disease that had been going around and sadly passed away. Jū**_ _ **shi**_ _ **rō**_ _ **was 15 when it happened and his father had just began to teach him what he would need to know as the family heir.**_

Two years had passed since Akemi's passing and Jūshirō was now 17 year old.

His father was away for the day, his great-uncle visited a friend and his aunt was running errands so he was in charge of his seven younger siblings.

They were all running around while he sat under a tree with one of his favorite books.

"Big brother"

He looked up when Ayame came running towards him, the twins behind her.

"What's the matter Ayame?"

"Kazuki and Kenta pushed me into the flowers"

"We did not!"

Jūshirō looked at his younger brothers and they took it as a sign to be quiet.

"You two can go back to playing with the others.

-Ayame, why don't you sit down with me for a while."

"Okay"

The twins ran back to the rest of their siblings while Ayame sat down next to Jūshirō who placed his arm around her.

"So what exactly did they do?"

"I was looking at the flowers mommy loved when Kazuki and Kenta came up behind me and scared me so I fell in the dirt"

"I'll talk to them later about not doing that anymore"

"Thank you"

"Anything for my baby sister"

 _ **Emi came home a while later and**_ _ **Jū**_ _ **san**_ _ **rō**_ _ **came a few hours after her.**_

"Hasn't uncle returned yet?"

"Not yet, said Emi"

"I guess he lost track of time since he hasn't seen his friend in a long time"

"He'll come when he comes brother, don't worry. Uncle is a grown man after all"

"You're right"

Jūsanrō then turned to his oldest.

"So what's happened today?"

"We've been outside for most of the day. I figured they needed to run off some energy, especially the twins

-Speaking of those two..."

"Did something happen?"

"They decided to scare Ayame while she was looking at those flowers mom used to take care of in the garden and it ended up with her in the dirt.

-I talked to them and they promised not to do that again"

"That's good. Well done Jūshirō"

"Thank you father"

They then heard the door open and in came Hiroshi followed by a man with black hair on the sides of his head while the top was bald. He had thick black eyebrows and a long, thick black mustache as well as a scar over his forehead.

He was also dressed like a Soul Reaper.

"Welcome back uncle, said Emi"

"Thank you"

He then turned to the man next to him.

"Shigekuni this is my nephew Jūsanrō and my niece Emi"

"Nice to meet you sir, said Jūsanrō"

The man nodded at the two before looking at Jūshirō.

"And who might this young man be?"

"I'm Jūshirō Ukitake sir"

"He's my oldest son and the family heir, Jūsanrō said"

"I see, said the man"

"Everyone this is my old friend, Shigekuni Yamamoto"

"A pleasure to meet all of you. Hiroshi has told me a lot about his family"

The two then sat down with them.

"So what brings you here Yamamoto-san, Emi asked"

"I invited him, said Hiroshi.

-And mostly to meet Jūshirō"

"Why, the young man asked"

"I may not be a Soul Reaper like your father but I have felt spiritual energy come from your for a few years now and recently, it has gotten stronger"

"Spiritual energy?"

"What your great-uncle is trying to say is that you might very well become a Soul Reaper one day, Jūsanrō explained"

"Me, a Soul Reaper?"

He looked at his father, then his great-uncle and at last at Yamamoto.

"Hiroshi has told me a lot about you and that your life hasn't been the easiets but you have fought and showed how strong you truly are.

-And I too can sense the powers coming from you are strong"

"With all due respect Yamamoto-san but can my son even become a Soul Reaper?"

"If you're thinking about his health then it shouldn't be a problem for him. The stronger his powers becomes, the stronger he become.

-And you are in luck young man"

"How, Jūshirō asked"

"Up until recently, Soul Reapers haven't really recieved proper ways to learn about their powers but I will change that since I've founded an academy that will teach youngsters like you about what it means to be a Soul Reaper.

-You can be one of the first new well trained generation of Soul Reapers"

"But I have my duties to my family..."

"Not to worry. Other heirs will join the academy as well because their parents are still strong enough to hold the positions"

Jūshirō then turned to his father who nodded at him.

"If you want to learn about being a Soul Reaper I won't stop you and I'm more than strong enough to remain as family head for many years"

The young man nodded and turned to Yamamoto.

"This is a lot to take in sir.

-May I have some time to think about it?"

"Of course. Just tell Hiroshi when you've made a decision"

"Thank you sir"

 _ **Yamamoto then left and later that night,**_ _ **Jū**_ _ **shi**_ _ **rō**_ _ **sat in his room watching the night sky.**_

"A Soul Reaper... me. I know I've felt stronger the past years but I never thought it was thanks to spirit energy"

The door then opened and he turned to see his father.

"Can't sleep?"

"No. I'm thinking about what Yamamoto-san told us"

"I understand that"

Jūsanrō walked over to his son and sat down.

"It is true what he told you though"

"About what?"

"For some time now, I've suspected that your reiatsu is what has been helping you support your body through your worse attacks"

"I always thought it was the medicine Kirinji made"

"That was mostly when you were younger but since you turned 15, your reiatsu has increased quite a lot and helped you"

He then placed a hand on his son's shoulder.

"You don't have to become a Soul Reaper unless you want to but like Yamamoto said, your are strong due to everything you've been through.

-You've never let your illness stop you from doing what you want and what you think is right. The Seireitei needs someone like that"

Jūshirō looked at his father and nodded after a while.

"I think... I want to try to become a Soul Reaper"

"Then I will support your decision"

"Thank you father"

 _ **So the next day, they told Hiroshi about their little talk and he in turn told Yamamoto that his great-nephew was happy to study at his school.**_

 _Author note._

 _So next chapter_ _Jū_ _shi_ _rō_ _will start to attend the academy which means a certain someone will make an appearance._


	6. Kyōraku

_**A couple of months after the talk with Yamamoto, it was time for Jū**_ _ **shi**_ _ **rō**_ _ **to leave for his first term at the school Yamamoto had created. After saying goodbye to his siblings, aunt and great-uncle, he and**_ _ **Jū**_ _ **san**_ _ **rō**_ _ **made their way to the school.**_

"So this is the school Yamamoto built, said Jūsanrō"

"It's even bigger than I thought"

"With so many people who wants to learn what it means to be a Soul Reaper, it has to be big"

The two turned around and saw Yamamoto stand behind them.

"So what do you think young Jūshirō?"

"It's amazing sir"

"Good to hear"

Yamamoto then started to walk towards the school.

"The entrance ceremony will begin soon by the main building"

"Okay. I'll be there soon sir"

Yamamoto nodded and kept walking leaving father and son alone.

"I guess it's time, said Jūsanrō

-Do your best and take care my son"

"I will father"

The two gave each other a hug before Jūshirō walked towards the main school building and his father left.

He joined the other students in front of a small stage by the main building were Yamamoto stood.

"Welcome everyone to Soul Reaper academy. A school I founded to train those with spiritual abilities on how to use them properly, preparing them for their future as Soul Reapers.

-I hope all of you will study hard and well during your time here. But today is for you to learn how to find your ways around the school grounds"

The students were then dimissed so they could look around the school.

Jūshirō walked around inside, finding the different classrooms, the medical wing, the dorms etc.

 _ **After leaving his things in his assigned room, he walked outside and sat down in the shade of a tree with a book.**_

As he sat there, he heard what sounded like girls screaming but he didn't think to much about it and went back to his book.

After a while, he heard footsteps and looked up to see a dark-haired male students stand there.

"Hi. Mind if I sit down?"

"Not at all"

The guy sat down and leaned back against the tree.

"Thanks.

-I'm Shunsui Kyōraku"

"Nice to meet you.

-My name is Jūshirō Ukitake"

"Are you a first year?"

"Yes. Yamamoto himself came to see me and my family a while back after my great-uncle told him about me.

-He invited me to come here since he felt strong spiritual pressure from me"

"So you're not from a noble or aristocratic clan?"

"Well, I am from an aristocratic family but we're very low-ranked"

"I see"

"HEY KYŌRAKU"

The two looked up and saw some male students a bit away.

"Come on! We had things planned remember"

"I'm coming.

-See you around Ukitake"

Shunsui got up and ran over to the other students while Jūshirō got back to his book.

 _ **Later**_

After dinner, all students went to their rooms to rest before classes start the next morning.

When Jūshirō entered his room, he noticed a few things that wasn't there earlier.

 _"That's right, we're supposed to share rooms with others._

 _-Well it's nothing I'm not used to since I shared with Tatsuya for a couple of years"_

He then looked around but couldn't see anyone else in the room.

"Guess they haven't come back yet"

Right then, the door opened and there stood the guy from earlier.

"Oh Kyōraku"

"Ah Ukitake. So you're my roommate"

"Looks like that"

"That explains the stuff that was in here"

"I hope you don't mind that I've picked a side of the room already"

"Not at all"

Shunsui then sat down on his bed.

"Kyōraku"

"Yes?"

"I'm just curious but is your family high aristocrats?"

"We are. Yamamoto actually came to see my family as well and told my parents that I was wise for my age and something about being able to see the truth.

-I was sent here against my will to be honest"

"Why?"

Shunsui sighed and looked away.

"I don't really wanna talk about it"

"Okay. If that's what you want, then I'll respect that"

"Thanks"

Jūshirō smiled and Shunsui did the same.

"So what's your family like?"

"Well I'm the oldest out of eight"

"Eight?!"

"Yes. I have five younger brothers and two younger sisters"

"Wow. Quite a big family"

"Yes but I wouldn't have it any other way"

The two talked about themselves for a while to get to know each other a bit before they fell asleep.

 _ **Jū**_ _ **shi**_ _ **rō**_ _ **soon learned a few things about his roommate. One was that he was a womanizer and when he had the chance, he would go after the girls in their class.**_

He had been sitting in the library when Shunsui came, holding a hand to his cheek.

"Let's me guess. You tried to chase after one of the female students again and she slapped you"

"How did you know, Shunsui said a bit sarcastic"

He removed his hand from his cheek to reveal a red mark.

"Maybe you should learn not to go after them like that Kyōraku"

"This is the first time this happens. Just because one girl did it doesn't mean others will"

"That depends on how you approach them"

Shunsui chuckled before sitting down opposite his roommate.

"What are you doing anyway, Ukitake?"

"The homework we got for our Kidō class. You know, the one were we had to learn the incantations to spells 1-10 for both Bakudō and Hadō"

"When was that due again?"

"Next week"

"So why are you doing it now?"

"I thought it would be good to finish it so I don't have to worry about it"

This was another thing he had learned about Shunsui, he pushed up doing his homework until the very last day unlike himself who did it either the same day or the day after they got them.

"By the way Kyōraku, what did you do yesterday that made you sleep so long that you missed class this morning?"

"Oh nothing special. Just hanging out with some of the guys from class"

"I see.

-I tried waking you but after my third attempt, I gave up since nothing seemed to get you up"

This earned him a laugh from the other.


	7. School

_**About a month had passed since Jū**_ _ **shi**_ _ **rō**_ _ **entered the academy and he had gotten quite used to his classes.**_

He was sitting under one of the tress in the schoolyard looking over his assignment for a class when he heard footsteps come towards him.

He looked up and saw Shunsui along with two others.

Masaru Kuchiki was the heir to the Kuchiki clan, one of the great noble familes. He was between Jūshirō and Shunsui in height, had grey eyes and black hair in which he had a white headpiece called kenseikan.

The other person with them was Koji Shiba who was the heir to another great noble family. His hair was raven black and his eyes was an aqua-green color.

These were the two he had seen calling for Shunsui on the first day of school and despite them being from the great noble clans, the two had quickly accepted Jūshirō as a friend.

"What you doing Ukitake, Koji asked"

"Just looking over that assignment we got in the history class"

"Ah that one about the Soul King, right?"

"Yes.

-So what brings you three here?"

"It's almost lunch time so we came to get you, said Masaru.

-If we hadn't, you might as well have missed it because you were so deep into that assignment"

"Oh, thank you for reminding me then"

"Come on then, said Shunsui"

Jūshirō nodded and quickly gathered the books he had laying next to him.

"I'll meet you there. I'm just gonna leave these in my room"

"Sure thing, said Koji"

They walked towards the school building and once inside, they split up. Shunsui and the others went to get lunch and Jūshirō went to the dorms.

Once he had left his books, he joined the others.

"Hey, what's our next class after lunch is over, Koji asked"

"Zanjutsu and Kidō, said Jūshirō"

"Oh Nishimura-sensei is probably going to have us do spells with those long incantations, Shunsui said with a sigh"

"First of all Kyōraku, most Kidō have long incantations so there's no need for you to complain, said Masaru

-Second, Yamamoto-sensei is probably going to have us do those stances again and those were so annoying to do"

"Oh you're right"

 _ **Once lunch was over, the four of them made their way to the kid**_ _ **ō**_ _ **practice field.**_

"Hello students"

"Good afternoon Nishimura-sensei"

"Today I'm gonna have you practice against each other in order for you to learn Bakudō #21 Sekienton.

-It's a usefull Kidō if you want obsure the movements of whoever is in the red smoke it creates and have a quick getaway"

He then looked over the rows of students.

"Kuchiki come up here"

"Yes sir"

Masaru got up and walked over to their teacher.

"Pretend that you want to attack me and come at me with all you got"

"Okay"

Masaru took a stance before charging towards Nishimura who placed his hands on the ground and red smoke appeared around them.

When it died down, he was no longer standing there.

"Do you students see now how usefull this spell can be"

Everyone looked around and saw him stand by the targets a bit away.

"You are all gonna split into pairs. One of you take the role of an enemy who tries to attack while the other tries to perfectly use Sekienton.

-Understood?"

"Yes sir"

All the students then began to split up. Shunsui was quick in grabbing the collar of Jūshirō's uniform.

Soon, everyone had split into pairs.

"Okay, three pairs at a time since the smoke is gonna cover this whole place if all of you do it at the same time.

-Ukitake and Kyōraku. Kuchiki and Shiba. Hazuki and Ichinose. You three pairs are up first"

"Yes sensei"

All six got up and spread out across the field.

"Begin!"

The students who had the role of attacker ran towards the other who tried to put up Sekienton.

It started off with just puffs of smoke that slowly and steady became bigger clouds.

When the three pairs finished their turn, they sat down with the others and three other pairs took their place.

 _ **Once that class was over, they headed to the dojo for their Zanjutsu class.**_

"Good afternoon students"

"Good afternoon Yamamoto-sensei"

"Today I want you all to go over the stances I taught you two days ago

-Everyone grab a Bokken and line up"

Some students sighed as they got up and picked up the training swords before lining up in two rows.

"You may begin"

They all started to do the stances Yamamoto had taught them as he walked between the two rows.

"These stance is the base of your training since by either your 2nd or 3rd year, you will use your Asauchi, the swords you were given quite recently.

-Unless you master what I teach you this year, you are all gonna be a danger for yourselves and others once you start swinging a real sword."

As he kept walking by the students, he stopped every now and then to correct their stances by using his own Bokken to straigthen their legs, backs or arms.

Over an hour later, class finished.

"Good job today everyone.

-Class dismissed"

With relieved sighs, the students left the dojo and walked into the school building for dinner.

"Man those two classes were tough, Koji said as the four sat down"

"No kidding, Old-man Yama could be a bit kinder when correcting the stances, Shunsui complained as he rubbed his wrist"

"Yeah and how come you two didn't get hit by his Bokken as many times as we did?"

The two looked across the table at Jūshirō and Masaru.

"Because we didn't makes as many mistakes as you two did, said Masaru"

"Kuchiki you bastard, Koji mumbled"

"If you get the stances right, sensei don't have to correct you as much, said Jūshirō

-I'm not saying that you two are bad or anything but maybe you should pay a bit more attention. He did teach us those stances yesterday so they should still have been fresh in your mind"

"I agree with him, said Masaru"

The rest of dinner was quiet and once they were done, they split up and went to their respective rooms.

As soon as they opened the door to their room, Shunsui threw himself onto his bed.

"This has been a tough day"

"Even though you overslept for the tenth time and missed the first half of history again"

"Hey, I need my sleep. I can't help that my body tells me to sleep for that long"

Jūshirō chuckled a bit and picked up an envelope from his desk before sitting down on his bed.

"Letter from your family?"

"Yes. I got it after class earlier today and decided to wait until the day was over before opening it"

He opened the envelope and started to read through the letter before picking up something else that was in it.

"What's that Shunsui asked?"

He got up and walked over to his friend and saw that the paper had childish drawings along with words of good luck and do your best.

"My siblings made this. The three oldest wrote the messages while the four youngest made the drawings"

"That's kinda cute.

-They must miss you alot"

"Yes. I remember that the day I left, my youngest sister held onto my leg and refused to let go until our aunt picked her up.

-We've always been together since we all were small so I guess it was different for them that I wasn't gonna be at home with them all the time like I used to"

"Well, I guess you look forward to the break in a couple of months then so you can see them again"

"I do and I'm sure they are doing the same"

 _ **Author's note.**_

 _ **Finally I'm done with this chapter after a month of no inspiration and being busy with other things but now... I'M BACK!**_

 _ **So look forward to more chapters of this story.**_

I tried to model Masaru a bit after how I believe Byakuya would have been if his father had been alive. Still serious like a noble man but having a sense of fun.


	8. Illness

_**A couple of months had passed since Jū**_ _ **shi**_ _ **rō**_ _ **came to the academy and so far everything was going well for him. He had gotten some friends and did find the classes interesting.**_

This morning however, he had woken up with a slight tight feeling in his chest.

" _I'm not surprised I feel like this since I haven't been sick since I came here._

 _-But today of all days"_

Today was the first day of mid-term tests to see how much the students had learned since they got to the academy.

 _"It's not that bad so let's hope it stays this way until the tests are over"_

He then looked over at Shunsui and saw that he was still sleeping.

 _"Guess I better get ready and then wake him up so he won't be late"_

He got up and changed to his uniform before standing next to his friend's bed.

"Kyōraku wake up"

No answer or reaction came from the other.

Jūshirō sighed before he grabbed a glass and threw the small amout of water in it at Shunsui's face which made him jolt up.

"What was that for Ukitake?"

"I tried calling your name to wake you up but you didn't hear me so I did the 2nd best thing.

-Get up and get changed. We have mid-terms today"

"Oh yeah. I forgot about that"

"How could you do that when the teacher told us yesterday?"

"Well..."

"You know what, you don't have to tell me why. Your focus was probably on one of the female students."

A small cough then escaped Jūshirō who covered his mouth with his hand.

When he removed it, he was glad to see there wasn't any blood in his hand.

"You okay Ukitake? You look paler than usual"

"I'm fine Kyōraku. No need to worry"

"If you say so"

Shunsui then got dressed and they left their room.

 _ **Later**_

Jūshirō, Shunsui and the rest of their class entered the dojo were Yamamoto waited.

"Good afternoon everyone"

"Good afternoon Yamamoto-sensei"

"Today I want to see how far you've all come by having you sparr one-on-one in pairs that I've decided.

-Tsunayashiro, Matsuoka you first"

"Yes sir"

The two got up and began their match.

One after one, the pairs showed their skills until Shunsui and Jūshirō were the only ones left.

"The rest of you may leave while I examine these two"

The other students got up and left the dojo while the two friends grabbed their Bokken.

"Begin!"

The two began and tried to hit the wooden swords out of each other's hands.

After a while, Jūshirō began to feel that the tightness in his chest was getting worse.

It distracted him long enough for Shunsui to get down and swipe his leg against Jūshirō's feet so he fell on his back.

"Guess I win"

Jūshirō nodded and Shunsui helped him up. But as soon as he was on his feet, wet coughs came from him and he feel to his knees.

"Ukitake what's wrong?"

Shunsui knelt down and saw the crimson droplets between Jūshirō's fingers.

"Kyōraku get him to the healers' wing now!"

"Yes sensei"

 _ **Shunsui took**_ _ **Jū**_ _ **shi**_ _ **rō**_ _ **'s arm and placed it over his shoulders to support him as they left the dojo.**_

They entered the main building and once they reached the healers' wing, Shunsui was almost carrying Jūshirō rather than supporting him.

"Anyone here?"

A slightly elder healer came froma room and saw them.

"What happened?"

"We were training with Yamamoto-sensei when he started coughing and blood came from his mouth"

"Okay. Bring him in here"

Shunsui followed her into a room were he placed Jūshirō on the bed.

"Could you please wait outside?"

"Of course"

Shunsui left the room and leaned against the wall opposite the door.

As he stood there, he saw a few more healers enter the room and one of them came up to him.

"You're the one who brought him here, right?"

"Yes"

"Could you answer a few question for me?"

"Of course"

"What's the student's name and which class is he in?"

"His name is Jūshirō Ukitake and he's in the first year advanced class"

"Okay.

-Can you tell me more in detail what happened?"

"We were having a sparring match with Yamamoto-sensei. I made him fall onto his back but not that hard. I helped him up and then he started coughing"

"I understand.

-Thank you for telling me"

She then returned to the room, leaving Shunsui alone in the hallway.

" _When I told her his name, I couldn't help but notice the look in her eyes. It was as if she recognized it since earlier. I wonder why?"_

 _ **About an hour later, the older healer came out to him.**_

"Your friend is okay now. But I want him to stay here for a few days just to make sure"

"I see.

-So what exactly happened to him?"

"He told me that he wanted to tell you himself"

"Okay"

"As soon as the others leave, you may go in

-I need to inform Yamamoto-sen about this"

Shunsui nodded and she left.

Once the other healers had left the room, he walked in and saw his friend laying against a few pillows to elevate him a bit.

"How are you Ukitake?"

"Better thanks to the healers"

"That's good"

Shunsui then sat down on the chair next to the bed and got this serious look in his eyes.

"So what's all this about?"

Jūshirō sighed and leaned back a bit more against the pillows.

"When I was three years old, I got very sick. My parents told me that every doctor they took me to abandoned me as a lost cause since it was incureable.

-They brought me to the shrine of a fallen god named Mimihagi as a last chance to save me. It did but I still suffer from the illness if I get too worked up, too hot or too cold"

"Is that also why you seemed paler this morning?"

"Yes.

-I didn't want to miss the tests today and I felt well enough this morning to go to class. But then during our sparrin match, I felt it get worse"

"Just like that?"

"Sometimes it just goes from okay to worse quite fast while other times, it takes days to get worse.

-Today was one of theose days it happened fast"

"I see.

-So why didn't you tell me the truth this morning? Aren't we friends Ukitake?"

"I didn't tell you because... I was afraid"

"Afraid of what?"

"That you didn't want to be close to me or wouldn't be able to handle the truth"

"Why wouldn't I?"

"When I was little, my siblings and I would play with other kids in the area. But as soon as they found out about me, they didn't want to play because they thought it would make me sick.

-Up until then they had treated me just like my siblings but when the truth came out, they couldn't handle it. My mother had to explain the situation to their parents who in turn told them"

Shunsui looked at Jūshirō and noticed the sad look in his eyes. He had no idea how tough his friend's past was.

He then placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm not going anywhere Ukitake. You're my friend and I'm not gonna let a thing like this get in the way of that.

-But please tell me the truth next time you don't feel well"

Jūshirō looked at him in surprise before smiling.

"Don't worry Kyōraku, I will"

"Call me Shunsui"

"Right... Shunsui"

 _ **The next day.**_

Shunsui forced himself out of bed an hour before class. He wasn't a morning person but he had promised Jūshirō to get him notes from the classes he'd miss.

He got up, changed to his uniform and walked to his first class.

"Hey, look who's on time and not hungover, said Koji"

"Be quiet Shiba, Shunsui said and sat down"

"Isn't Ukitake with you, Masaru asked.

-He's never late for class"

Shunsui looked at the two before turning away his head.

 _"Should I tell them? They are our friends but maybe it's better_ _Jū_ _shi_ _rō_ _decides to tell them or not"_

"Hey Kyōraku!"

Koji's yell got him out of his thoughts.

"Well, do you know?"

Shunsui was about to say something when the teacher came in.

"I'll tell you at lunch, he whispered to them"

He then got up and walked over to their teacher, showing him a note that the healers had asked him to show every teacher so they would know about Jūshirō.

 _ **Couple of hours later.**_

The final class before lunch was over and once they had sat down, Masaru and Koji waited for Shunsui to start talking.

"Relax you two. You look like I'm gonna tell you someone is dead"

"Excuse us for being worries about our friend, said Koji"

"Since Kyōraku is not worries, I don't thin we have to either, said Masaru"

"Listen to him Shiba, said Shunsui

-As for Jū... Ukitake, he's fine but needs to stay in the healers' wing for a couple of days"

"Why, Koji asked"

Shunsui sighed.

"A little thing happened yesterday during the sparring match we had.

-I'm not gonna tell you more than that. You have to ask him if you wanna know more"

"Okay, then we'll go see him later once all classes are over, said Koji"

"I think we should wait, said Masaru

-If it was bad enough for him to end up in the healers' wing, it's better if we wait and ask him once he's able to return to class"

Koji looked at him before he sighed.

"Fine"

Shunsui chucked at how easily the Shiba heir gave up.

"Juding by the healers, he should be back by the end of next week"

"Okay, said both"

 _ **Once everything was done for the day, Shunsui made his way to the healers' wing.**_

In his hand he carried the book of notes he had taken during the day along with a few papers from their teachers.

"Hey Jūshirō, how are you, he asked as he entered the room"

"I'm feeling better than yesterday"

"That's good to hear.

-I brought you notes from the classes you missed today and the teachers also added a few things as well"

He handed the notebook to his friend who took it.

"Thank you. I appreciate that you're doing this"

"Wouldn't want you to fall behind just because you're sick.

-The teachers also wated me to assure you that you can take the med-terms you miss once you're well enough to return to class"

"That's good to know"

Shunsui nodded and smiled at his friend before he sat down and they looked over the notes.


	9. Back to class

_**It took about five days before Jū**_ _ **shi**_ _ **rō**_ _ **was allowed to leave the healers' wing but he wasn't allowed to return to class just yet.**_

Jūshirō and the elderly healer, Kiyoko walked out of the healers' wing and there, he saw Shunsui lean against the wall.

"Shunsui why are you here?"

"Kiyoko-san asked me to come"

"Since you just recovered from that bad attack, I didn't want you to go all the way to the dorms alone so I asked Kyōraku to take you there, Kiyoko explained.

-Take it easy now for a few days. Yamamoto-san as well as your Kidō teacher has been informed that you are under my orders to only observe their classes for the next week. Understood Ukitake?"

"Yes ma'am"

"I'll make sure he follows your orders, Shunsui said"

"Thank you Kyōraku"

The two friends then began to walk towards the dorms.

"It's good to see you up on your feet again"

"Thank you. I'm glad it was an attack that I could recover from quite fast. In worse case I would have been stuck in the healers' wing for weeks"

"We wouldn't want that"

"We wouldn't

-By the way, how did you get permission to skip class this morning?"

"Kiyoko-san gave the teacher a not yesterday saying that she needed my help with escorting a patient to his room this morning and he just let me skip class"

"I see"

The two then reached their room and walked in.

"The notes from yesterday's classes are on your desk. I decided that since you were leaving the healers' wing today, I might as well leave them there for you"

"Thank you Shunsui"

"No problem. That's what friends do.

-Speaking of friends. Masaru and Koji have been asking about you. I didn't tell them anything about your illness, just that something happened in Yamamoto-sensei's class"

He couldn't help but smile when his friend sighed in relief.

"Thank you for not telling them"

"I thought that it was up to you if you wanted to tell them the full story or not"

"Do you think they can handle the truth?"

"Masaru maybe"

"You're right. He is more calm and understanding than Shiba"

Shunsui chuckled at that before he walked over to the door.

"I better get going or you'll kick me out because I'm gonna be late.

-I'll see you later"

"We do Shunsui"

The dark-haired student then left the room and Jūshirō decided to have a look at the notes from his classes. The other assignments he had missed had been given to the respective teacher by Shunsui during the days he had been in the healers' wing.

There wasn't any assignments among the papers, just notes on what they had started to talk about during the previous day which he would be able to catch up on quite fast.

Beneath all the papers from the teachers, he found an envelope with his family crest on it.

" _I can guess what this is about. Yamamoto-sensei must have informed father about what happened"_

He took the envelope and opened it.

 _ **Jūshirō**_

 _ **Yamamoto-san sent a message a few days ago and told us what had happened during your class. I know you want to do a good job there at the academy but you also need to think about your own health and put that above anything.**_

 _ **Yamamoto knows about your condition so taking days off when you're not feeling well won't be bad for you.**_

 _ **So please take more care of yourself from now on and send a message when you're back in class.**_

 _ **I'll see you when you come home during your break, your brothers and sister miss you.**_

 _ **Your father.**_

Jūshirō sighed when he put the letter down.

His father was right that he should have stayed in his room to rest on the morning he felt the tightness in his chest instead of going to class believing he could get through the day.

He put the school notes on the floor next to him before picking up a blank piece of paper to answer his father's letter.

 _ **Father.**_

 _ **I'm sorry if the letter from Yamamoto-sensei worried you but on the day it happened, I felt well enough to attend class, guess I wasn't ready for a bad attack myself.**_

 _ **I was released from the healers' wing today and will return to class tomorrow but I'm only allowed to observe my Zanjutsu and Kidō class for the next week or so.**_

 _ **I promise to be more careful from now on and if I don't then I'm gonna hear it from Shunsui, he's my roommate and he's become a good friend. When I told him the truth about my health, he didn't react like everyone else has done and told me he wouldn't let it get in the way of our friendship which made me happy.**_

 _ **Tell everyone I miss them too and that I will be happy to see them during break in next month.**_

 _ **Your son Jūshirō.**_

In the corner of the letter, he wrote the date so his father would know that he was back in class by the time he get it.

He then started to look over the notes again to make sure he got it memorized for the next day.

 _ **When Shunsui returned by the end of the day, he immediatly crashed onto his bed.**_

"That Shiba has really gonne me and Kuchiki on our nerves today"

"What did he do?"

"He wouldn't quit bugging me with questions about when you get back and when Kuchiki tried to stop him, he got angry at him"

"Good thing I'm coming back to class tomorrow then so you won't have to hear him ask you about it again"

"That is a relief"

He then sat up and looked at his friend.

"So what have you been doing?"

"Just looking over the notes from class and then I found a letter from my father that I read through and wrote an answer too"

"Oh yeah. Sorry I didn't give it too you earlier but it must have gotten lost beneath the papers"

"It's fine Shunsui. The important thing is that I found it now"

"I guess Old-man Yamamoto told him what happened to you"

"Yes. He told me to be more careful and think about my health before anything else sine Yamamoto-sensei knows about it.

-I won't send it until tomorrow but I wrote that I will be more careful and I'm gonna hear it from you if I'm not"

"You can count on that"

 _ **The next morning.**_

"Ready to go Jūshirō?"

"Yes"

The two left their room and made their way to the first class of the day.

They entered the room were they saw Masaru talk with a dark skinned young man.

"Hey Kuchiki, Shihōin, Shunsui called out to them"

Masaru turned around and a slight smile appeared on his face.

"Good to see you're back Ukitake"

"Thank you"

He then looked at the other student.

"This is Yamato Shihōin, he transeferred to our class just a couple of days ago because his family allowed him to attend the academy"

"It's nice to meet you. I'm Jūshirō Ukitake"

"A pleasure to finally meet you. Kuchiki, Shiba and Kyōraku has told me about you"

"Speaking of Shiba, were is he, Shunsui asked"

"Oversleept I guess, said Masaru"

"Aren't you two roommates?"

"We are but I didn't want to distrub him. It's his own fault for staying up past midnight to finish that extra work a teacher gave him"

The door to the classroom then slammed opened and there stood Koji with a slightly annoyed look on his face.

"Kuchiki! Why didn't you wake me up this morning?!"

"I didn't want to distrub you and it serves you right since you stayed up past midnight"

Koji looked at the other nobleman before he sighed to calm himself.

It was then he noticed the three sets of eyes looking at them.

"Ukitake you're back"

"Yes. I'm perfectly fine now but for the next week I'm only allowed to observe Kidō and Zanjutsu class"

"So what happened to you? Kyōraku just told us something happened during Yamamoto-sensei's class after the rest of us left"

"Well my health is slightly weaker than other peoples' and I get sick easily if it's too cold or hot. I must have caught something the day before that grew slightly worse than I expected.

-I would probably have ignored it if Yamamoto-sensei hadn't noticed and told Kyōraku to take me to the healers' wing"

"That explains the situation, said Masaru

-And I guess the healer ordered you to only observe those classes to make sure you're fully recovered"

"Yes. Since I was released from their care yesterday, they wanted me to skip a few days to make sure everything is fine.

-I'm used to that since back home if it happened, father didn't want me playing with my siblings until a few days after I recovered"

"We understand, said both Masaru and Koji"

Their teacher then came and class began.

 _ **Couple of hours later.**_

Lunch was over and it was time for Kidō class.

"Hello everyone"

"Good afternoon Nishimura-sensei"

"Today's lesson is about the Red Flame Cannon spell, Shakkahō.

-Anyone know which number it is?"

"Number 31 sir"

"Correct Ukitake.

-Observe"

Nishimura turned towards the targets a bit away and held ut his right hand.

"Ruler, mask of flesh and blood, all things in the universe fly. That which names all in nature. Gathering of heat and war. Beyond the seas in reverse, take steps to the south.

\- Hadō #31 Shakkahō!"

A ball of fire appeared at his hand and he fired it towards the targets, hitting one perfectly in the middle.

"I will now divide you into three groups and once I give the signal, you are to walk up to the line and try the incantation you just heard me say

-Ukitake, the healers informed me about you so you will stay on the sideline watching the others. Maybe take this time to memorize the incantation"

"Yes sir"

 _ **The rest of the day went smothly and Jūshirō was happy to be back in class again.**_

 _ **He took the midterm test he had missed a few days later and a couple of weeks after that, it was time for the first break.**_


	10. Break

Jūshirō, Shunsui, Masaru, Koji and Yamato all stood outside the academy, ready to leave for their break.

They then saw five people appear by the gate. Three of them looked like body guards and each had a symbol on their cloathing.

One looked kind of like a ninja with a symbol that looked like two rectangles forming a cross with a star on the shorter edges and a laying crecent moon in the middle of it.

Another was dressed like a Soul Reaper but wore a shorter version of an Haori with the symbol on the back looking like two cranes with some clouds by their wings.

The last one was big muscular man who wore a spiral symbol on his cloathing.

The other two were a black-haired woman with glasses dressed in a pink kimono and she was talking with Jūshirō's great-uncle.

The five boys then walked up to them.

"Ready to depart master Yamato?"

"Yes. See you in two weeks everyone"

"We do, said Koji"

Yamato left with the ninja, Masaru with the man in a shorter Haori and Koji with the muscular man.

"Good to see you Jūshirō. We've missed you at home"

"I've missed all of you too, great-uncle"

He then turned to his friend.

"Have a good break Shunsui"

"Same for you Jūshirō"

 _ **Jūshirō and his great-uncle then began to walk home.**_

"I guess father is busy since you came"

"Yes. He wanted to be the one to come but something with his work came up and I offered to go while Emi looks after the little ones"

"Are they still as wild as when I left?"

"Yes. Especialy the twins"

Jūshirō smiled a little at the thought of seeing his siblings for the first time in months.

"Were those your friends back there, Hiroshi asked"

"Yes"

"Being friends with the heirs to three of the great noble families is something"

"I meet them through Shunsui except Yamato who I meet a couple of weeks ago when he transferred to our class"

"I see.

-I'm glad you've found some friends"

"So am I"

Jūshirō then looked up and saw that they were almost at their home.

"Get ready for the little ones to tackle you when we go inside"

"It won't be the first time"

Hiroshi chuckled and they walked in.

"I'm back"

Emi was the first one to appear and she smiled at the sight of her nephew.

"Welcome home Jūshirō"

"Thank you aunt Emi"

She hugged him and once she let go, they heard a lot of footsteps get closer.

Before Jūshirō knew it, he had been tackled to the floor by his four youngest siblings.

"Big brother you're home, said Kazuki"

"We've missed you, said Ayame"

"I've missed all of you too"

"Children get off your brother and hug his properly rather than knocking him to the floor like that, said Emi"

"Sorry aunt Emi, said Kenta"

The four got off and once Jūshirō had gotten up so he knelt, they hugged him more gently.

He then stood up and the three oldest hugged him as well.

"Welcome home big brother, said Tatsuya"

"It's great to see you again, said Izumi"

"It's great to see all of you as well"

"So how is the academy, Ryouta asked"

"Very good. Yamamoto is a great teacher and so are the others as well"

"That's good to hear, said Emi"

 _ **Jūshirō then walked to his room to change his uniform into something more comfortable to walk around at home in and once he had done that, he walked to the living room.**_

He sat down and the rest of the family soon joined him.

"So what's the academy like, Tatsuya asked"

"There are a lot of studying since there are four fighting styles we need to learn in order to become Soul Reapers.

-There's Zanjutsu which is sword fighting. Hakuda that's hand-to-hand combat. Kidō which are these spells were taught to use and last there's, Hohō which is more of a defensive style of fighting and it focuses on footwork"

"Sounds like a lot, said Kenji"

"Well it's needed for me to know all those things so I can become a good Soul Reaper"

Emi and Hiroshi couldn't help but smile at the younger kids bombarding their brother with questions.

"Your father mentioned that in the letter you sent, you wrote something about a friend, said Emi"

"I did. His name is Shunsui and he's part of Kyōraku clan. Through him I also meet the heirs to three of the great noble clans"

"Those were the other three with you earlier, Hiroshi asked"

"Yes. Yamato is from the Shihōin clan, Masaru from the Kuchiki clan and Koji is from the Shiba clan"

"That is not a bad thing"

Everyone turned to the door were Jūsanrō stood, smiling at his oldest son.

"That you have a friendship with the heirs to three noble clans as well as an high aristocrat will help our family build a relation to other clans"

"Jūsanrō you're starting to sound like your father when saying that, said Hiroshi.

-We should just be happy Jūshirō has found some friends, one of them even accepting him despite seeing the condition of his health"

"I was a bit surprised myself but Shunsui said that he wouldn't let something like that get in the way of our friendship, said Jūshirō"

"I'm happy to hear that, said Jūsanrō

-Others have always had trouble knowing about your health but this Shunsui sounds like a man who keps his word"

"What about the other three, Emi asked"

"I haven't told them yet. When I returned to class a couple of weeks ago, I told them that my health is weaker than others' and that I get sick easily.

-I'm waiting a bit to tell them since Shiba is one to jump to conclusions and things like that. I haven't had time to get to know Shihōin that well yet. The one who would understand the most is probably Kuchiki"

"Well it's up to you if you wanna tell them or not but if it happens again while you're at the academy, they might start to suspect something, said Hiroshi"

"Agree, said Jūsanrō"

 _ **The next day.**_

Jūshirō woke up and looked around his room a bit confused until he remembered that he had his break from the academy and had come home.

He got up and changed out the Yukata he had been sleeping in into a grey kimono and a pair of black hakama before walking out of his room.

Once he entered the dinning room, he found three of his siblings there.

"Morning big brother, said Ryouta"

"Good morning"

"Slept well, Izumi asked"

"Yes. I was a bit confused at first when I woke up but then I remembered that I came home yesterday"

He then sat down next to Tatsuya and a while later came Hiroshio with Emi and the four youngest.

"Good morning everyone"

"Morning aunt Emi, great-uncle, said Tatsuya"

She and the youngest kids all sat down with the four of them.

"So what are you all gonna do today, Hiroshi asked"

"I don't know, said Izumi.

-Maybe Juu can tells us some more things about the academy"

"Yeah, we wanna hear more, said Kenji"

Jūshirō chuckled a bit at his siblings eagerness.

"How about I show you something I was taught instead"

"Really, said Kenta"

"Yes"

"But Jūshirō, don't you wanna rest from all that since you have a break from the academy, Emi asked"

"It's okay aunt Emi. My break is two weeks so even if I show them something today, I'll still have time to rest before I have to go back"

"If you say so"

 _ **So after they had eaten breakfast,**_ _ **Jū**_ _ **shi**_ _ **rō**_ _ **took his siblings with him outside.**_

"Great-uncle do we have something I can use as targets?"

"There should be some wood pieces I was gonna throw away so you can use them"

Hiroshi walked away and came back with a couple of wood pieces that he helped Jūshirō set up.

"That good?"

"Perfect"

"Okay"

Jūshirō then turned to his siblings that were sitting on the porch.

"Ready?"

"Yes!"

He smiled and turned towards a target, holding out his finger.

"Hadō #4 Byakurai"

A bolt of lightning came from his finger and shoot through one of the targets which amazed his siblings.

"Hadō #31 Shakkahō"

A red ord formed at Jūshirō's palm before he shoot it towards another target.

 _"Good thing I managed to keep it smaller than usual"_

"Big brother that was amazing, said Kazuki"

"They can get even stronger if I use the right incantation but I didn't want to risk using too much power right now.

-There is also so other spells we get to learn but they are more defensive than these two"

"Can you show us that too, Kenji asked"

"Sure"

He turned back to the targets and put his hands together

"Bakudō #4 Hainawa"

A yellow energy rope surrounded his hands before he threw it at one of the targets, the rope wrapping around it.

 _ **For most of the day,**_ _ **Jū**_ _ **shi**_ _ **rō**_ _ **showed his younger siblings what he had learned at the academy so far both Kid**_ _ **ō**_ _ **and different Hakuda techniques.**_

 _ **Soon, there was only a couple of days left before he had to return to the academy.**_

"Two weeks sure goes by fast, said Jūshirō"

"Too bad your break wasn't longer, said Hiroshi"

The two had been the ones to wake up earliest and were now sitting on the porch.

"It will be during winter. I believe that one is almost a month"

"That sounds good

-You looking toward to see your friends again?"

"Yes"

The door behind them then opened and Jūsanrō came out to them.

"Father don't you have work today?"

"I asked to take today off.

-Since you return to the academy in two days, I wanted to take you kids somewhere so we could spend some time together"

"Where?"

"There is a lake in the 3rd district of Rukongai that your grandfather took me and Emi to when we were around the age of the twins.

-I thought it would be fun to take all of you there like my father took us"

"Sounds like a good idea"

 **So later when everyone was awake,** **Jū** **san** **rō** **took the kids to the 3rd district of Rukongai.**

While the younger kids were kick to get into the water of the lake, Jūshirō sat down in the shade along with Tatsuya.

"It was a nice idea to go out here"

"Father said he wanted to spend time with everyone since I'm going back to the academy in two days"

"We'll miss you when you go back"

"I know. But in winter, I'll be home for a whole month rather than just two weeks"

That made Tatsuya smile.

"I'm glad"

Jūshirō smiled at his brother before they decided to join the rest of their family.

They had a really fun time, the younger kids were splashing around in the water and as they were eating lunch that Emi had prepared, Jūsanrō told them about the times their grandfather had taken him there.

The five youngest as well as Ryouta and Izumi who never had a chance to meet Jūjirō (or remember him for the two older) listened to their father and loved hearing things about the grandfather they never had a chance to meet.

 _ **Two days later.**_

It was time for Jūshirō to return to the academy and he was standing outside the estate with the rest of his family.

"Take care now son"

"I will father"

"Keep doing your best, said Hiroshi"

"Of course"

"And don't do too much if you're not feeling well"

"I promise aunt Emi"

Jūshirō then turned to his siblings who one after another hugged him.

"We'll miss you big brother, said Kenta"

"I will miss all of you as well but I'll come home again soon"

He then left and once he reached the gates of the academy, he saw Yamato and Shunsui.

"Shunsui, Yamato"

The two turned around and smiled when they saw him.

"Hey Ukitake, had a nice break, Yamato asked"

"Yes. It was nice seeing my family again

-My siblings wanted to hear a lot of stories of my time here and see me practice"

Shunsui chuckled.

"Good to hear you had a good time"

"What about you two?"

"I spend time with my brother and his wife. It was good seeing them again"

"My father mostly spent my break away so I had the Shihōin manor to myself. Minus the servants of course"

 _ **The three of them then walked inside, ready to reassum their studies the following morning.**_


	11. 2nd year

_**The remaining time of their first year went by fast and soon, it was time for**_ _ **Jūshirō and the others to begin their second year at the academy.**_

The five friends were standing outside the academy gates, ready for their 2nd year.

"You guys ready, Shunsui asked"

"Of course, said Koji"

They all walked inside and split up at the dorms so they could leave their things.

"Good thing we didn't switch roommates, said Shunsui"

"Agree, said Jūshirō"

After they had left their things in their room, the two went to look for the others.

They found the three heirs talking to a from their class

"Oh Ukitake, Kyōraku, said one of them"

"Hello Kasahara-san, said Jūshirō"

"Beautiful as always Hiroko, said Shunsui"

"Never change do ya Kyōraku, said one of the male students named Takashi"

"Be quiet Nagayama"

Hiroko and two other girls, Harumi and Miki giggled a bit at the boys.

"Come on now, Yamamoto-sensei wanted us to meet him in the Dojo once we had left our things, said Kazuhiro, another male classmate"

"Right"

Everyone walked out of the school building and to the dojo were Yamamoto waited.

"Welcome back everyone"

"Thank you sensei"

"While your classes don't start until tomorrow, I want to give you all something"

Yamamoto pulled away a sheet and revealed rows of katanas.

"These are Asauchi, nameless Zanpakutō. From this year and until you graduate, you will train with these blades. Slowly but steady, the essence of your souls will be imprinted onto the blades and that is when they will become true Zanpakutō.

-Each of you take a sword and whenever you have the time, take that time to meditate with the swords to try and imprit your essence onto them"

"Yes sir!"

Each student got up and one after another, they grabbed a sword before Yamamoto dismissed them until their class the next day.

"We finally get to train using real Katana, said Koji"

"You're quite excited over this Shiba, said Yamato"

"Of course. Since father showed me his, I've always wanted to train to get my own and see what it turns into"

"Don't they just turn into other swords, Miki asked"

"Nope. The form they take depents on their weilder so it doesn't have to be swords, it can be many different things"

"Can't wait to see what they'll turn into, said Kazuhiro"

"It will probably take time, said Jūshirō"

"Ukitake is right, Sensei made it sound like it would take years for them to change, said Masaru"

"Hopefully we'll have true Zanpakutō by the time we graduate, said Takashi"

"That would be a good thing, said Hiroko"

 _ **The rest of the day was spent getting ready for the new challenges ahead and the next morning, everyone was up and ready for their first class of the year.**_

"Good morning and welcome to your second year here, said their Hakuda teacher"

"Thank you Sugawara-sensei"

Konoka Sugawara was a woman no one wanted to mess with. She was tough and a great master at the art of Hakuda or Hand-to-hand combat who Yamamoto had picked to train the young reapers.

"I know this is your first year with Hakuda but don't think I'm gonna go easy on you just because you're newbies

-Now pair up by finding the person who has the same symbol as you and I'll show you the basics"

"Yes Sensei"

Konoka watched as everyone took out the notes she'd given them when they got there and started to look for their partners.

Once they had done that, she looked at Yamato.

"You're the student from the Shihōin clan aren't you?"

"Yes ma'am"

"I heard your family specializes in Hakuda quite a bit"

"We do. I've been trained since I was little in the art by my father"

"Then come over here and help me demonstrate the basics"

Yamato nodded and walked up to their teacher.

Everytime she tried to kick him, he crossed his arms over his chest to block or he was quick to dodge it which impressed the others.

"Well everyone, now it's your turn"

"Yes sensei!"

The pairs spread out a bit across the field and began by training to block attacks.

As he blocked a kick from Masaru, Jūshirō was pushed back a bit.

"You okay Ukitake?"

"Yes. Don't worry about me

-You just came at me with more power than I expected"

"Okay.

-Let's have you attack me next"

"Right"

Before they kept going, Masaru looked towards Koji and Shunsui who seemed to be fooling around as soon as Konoka wasn't looking.

"Does those two ever take things serious?"

"Just what they want to take that way"

"You're right"

They then went back to their training.

Once class was over and they were walking down the halls, Shunsui placed his arm over Yamato's shoulder.

"I guess we know who's gonna be the teacher's pet for Hakuda"

"Come on Kyōraku, you know Shihōin isn't like that, said Masaru"

"Kuchiki is right, said Takashi"

"Besides, none of the teachers have favorites, said Kazuhiro"

"So far, said Koji"

"No one is gonna like you if you keep goofing around like you did during Hakuda class just now, said Masaru"

"I didn't"

"Ukitake and I saw how you and Kyōraku were fooling around when sensei wasn't looking"

"What the teacher don't know won't kill her"

Masaru just sighed at the other noble heir while their friends just chuckled behind them.

 **They walked out of the school and made their way to the dojo.**

"I know you all are eager to train with the Asauchi I gave out yesterday but we won't be training with them just yet.

-Today I wanna try on thing with you all"

Yamamoto picked up two wooden swords and turned to the students.

"I wanna see how good you are against me but to make it fair, you will do it in pairs"

He looked at the youngsters before his eyes landed on two.

"Ukitake, Kyōraku you're first.

-The rest of you make space for us"

As the two friends got up, he threw the wooden swords to them while the other students sat down by the walls.

"You two ready, Yamamoto asked"

"Yes sir, said Jūshirō"

"Then let's begin"

Yamamoto picked up a wooden sword of his own as his students assumed battle stances.

"How should we do this Shunsui, Jūshirō whispered"

"I say we just take him on"

Shunsui then ran towards Yamamoto and thrusted the sword forward but their teacher stepped to the side and knocked him to the floor with his sword.

Jūshirō took that as his chance and tried to attack with a slight jump but Yamamoto blocked it and when Jūshirō landed, he poked him in the back with the tip of the sword.

"Well that didn't go as well as I thought, said Shunsui"

" _Did he really believe attacking sensei head on would work?_

 _-_ Let's try together. One of us distract him while the other attack"

"Good idea"

Both got up and Yamamoto watched them as both ran towards him.

Jūshirō attacked so Yamamoto had to block and Shunsui took that as his chance to get behind him but their teacher pushed Jūshirō away and blocked Shunsui's attack.

 **A while later**

Both were pretty tired after trying to get at least one hit in on Yamamoto.

"You boys did better than I expected"

"Thank you sensei"

The two friends got up and bowed to their teacher.

"Sit down and take a break"

Both nodded and sat down, watching the rest of their classmates try the same thing.

 **Later that day:**

The students were at their history class and everyone was pretty thankfull when their teacher told them that they could leave.

"Thank god this day is over, I'm still sore from Yamamoto-sensei's class, said Shunsui"

"What do you think we are, said Koji"

"You two did it the best out of all of us, said Masaru"

"Guess Ukitake and I have talent then"

Jūshirō just slightly shook his head at his friend as Shunsui kept bragging about how they did the best in class.

A man who they recognized as one of Yamamoto's assistance then came up to them.

"Which on you is Jūshirō Ukitake?"

"That's me"

"This letter just came in from your family. It seems urgent"

"Thank you"

Jūshirō took the letter and as the man left, he opened it.

The other's watched as he read through it and that his eyes widened.

"What is it Ukitake, Yamato asked"

"My father... he's been killed"

 _ **Author's note.**_

 _ **The names of their classmates are actually names of the actors in the Bleach musicals.**_

 _ **Hiroko Kasahara is the actress that portrayed Unohana.**_

 _ **Takashi Nagayama played Toshiro in the first 8 musicals**_

 _ **Harumi comes from Harumi Inoue who played Rangiku**_

 _ **Miki is the actress who played Rukia**_

 _ **Kazuhiro is**_ _ **the name of the actor who played Ukitake in the 2011 musical**_

 _Their sensei's name Konoka also comes from another Bleach related thing and that is that a character in the 3rd Phantom game is named Konoka Suzunami_


	12. Goodbye father

"What did you say, said Koji"

"This letter is from my aunt.

-My father was apparently out on a mission to take care of some Hollows but he never came back. Other Soul Reapers found two survivors this morning who told them what happened"

The others saw the look in Jūshirō's eyes as he lowered the letter and Shunsui placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I need to talk with Yamamoto-sensei"

"Do you want one of us to come with you?"

"Please..."

Shunsui nodded and looked at the others.

"I'll go with him. You guys can go to the dorms"

"Okay, tells us what happens later, said Masaru"

The two nodded and left their friends, walking as fast as they could to Yamamoto's office.

When they got there, they knocked and waited for their teacher to tell them that it was okay to come in.

"What can I help you boys with?"

Jūshirō didn't say anything. He just walked up to Yamamoto's desk and showed him the letter.

The man read it before looking at his student with sympathy in his eyes.

"I'm sorry for you loss, Jūshirō"

The young man nodded before bowing his head.

"Sensei, I need to go home. I have to be with my family right now"

"That you do.

-Don't worry. I'll speak with the teachers and make sure the work you miss will be sent to your home"

"Thank you so much sensei"

Yamamoto nodded, stood up and walked over to his student, putting his hands on his shoulders.

"I'll send a message to Hiroshi, telling him you will come home tomorrow seeing that it's getting too late for you to leave now"

"Yes sensei"

Yamamoto then looked at Shunsui.

"Shunsui, tomorrow I want you to accompany Jūshirō home but you are to come back here right away once it's been done"

"Yes sir"

The two then left and made their way to their room.

"You okay?"

"I never thought this would happen to my father"

"I understand that.

-I may not know what you feel right now Jūshirō but I'm here to listen if you need to talk"

"Thank you Shunsui"

The dark-haired student smiled at his friend.

"What are friends for.

-And I promise that tomorrow, we'll leave as soon as we can so you can be with your family"

Jūshirō nodded with a slight smile and as they reached the dorms, they saw the others outside their room.

"So what's happening, Yamato asked"

"Sensei gave me permission to go home. I'm leaving first thing in the morning"

"And he told me to make sure Ukitake got home safely, said Shunsui"

"Okay, good to hear things to solved nicely, said Masaru"

"Yeah and don't forget that we're all here for you Ukitake, said Koji"

"Thank you everyone"

"Do you know how long you'll be gone, Yamato asked"

"No. It depends on how long it takes to plan and hold my father's funeral.

-And since I'm the oldest, I guess I have to take over as the head of my family as soon as possible"

"In other words, it can take a few weeks at least, said Masaru"

"Yes. But Yamamoto-sensei promised that all school work I'm missing will be sent to my home so I won't fall behind"

"That's good, said Koji"

The Shiba heir then placed a hand on Jūshirō's shoulder.

"I hope everything will be fine for you and your family"

"We all do, said Masaru"

Jūshirō looked at his friends all smiling at him and he smiled back, a single tears escaping the corner of his eye.

He had really found some great friends.

 _ **The next morning, Jūshirō and Shunsui got ready and left the academy after breakfast.**_

"I know you may not wanna talk that much about him after the news yesterday but I've wondered, what was your father like"

Jūshirō looked at Shunsui and then up at the sky.

"My father was a very kind man. He always put me and my siblings before anything especially after my mother passed away.

-He would use his days off to spend time with us, showing places his father used to take him and my aunt to when they were younger"

"Wish I could have meet him"

"He would have wanted to meet you too, all of you.

-During our first break last year, I told my family about you, Kuchiki and the others and he was surprised that I had become friends with the heirs of three great noble clans as well as an aristocratic family"

"Really?"

"Yes. But he and the rest of my family was happy that I had found friends. Father was also happy that I had found a friend who accepted my illness as well as you did"

"Why wouldn't I?

-It doesn't change who you are Jūshirō. You're the kindest guy I've ever meet and you're always so happy despite living with that illness"

Jūshirō smiled at hearing Shunsui say that, it felt good knowing that's how his friend thought of him.

They kept talking and soon reached the Ukitake estate were they saw Hiroshi in the garden.

"Great-uncle"

Hearing Jūshirō's voice made the elderly man turn towards them and he smiled seeing his great-nephew.

Walking over to them, he was quick to hug Jūshirō.

"How are you?"

"I still can't believe it"

"None of us can"

He let go and turned to Shunsui.

"Who's your friend?"

"I'm Shunsui Kyōraku, Jūshirō's classmate. Yamamoto-sensei wanted me to follow him home"

"It's nice to finally meet you Shunsui. My great-nephew has told me about you.

-I'm Hiroshi Ukitake and I guess you could call me a clan elder"

"Nice to meet you sir"

Shunsui bowed before turning to his friend.

"I better head back to the academy or sensei might get mad at me.

-Take care Jūshirō and I'll see you when you get back to the academy"

"We do Shunsui"

The dark-haired young man smiled and gave his friend's shoulder a pat before he started to walk away.

"Seems like a nice guy, said Hiroshi"

"I told you that didn't I"

"You did"

They two then walked into the house were they meet a teary eyed Emi.

"Aunt Emi"

"Oh Jūshirō"

She hugged her nephew.

"How are you?"

"I can't believe this has happened. When I got the letter, I didn't know what to think"

"Neither did we when we got the news"

Emi then let go of him.

"Your siblings are outside. I think they'll be happy to see you"

Jūshirō nodded and walked through the house to the backyard were he found his brothers and sisters.

They didn't notice him at first until Izumi turned her head towards the door.

"Big brother"

Jūshirō smiled as she got up to hug him, the others not far behind her.

"We didn't think the academy would let you come home, said Kazuki"

"I explained everything to Yamamoto-sensei who also is the head-master and he let me come home"

"For how long, Ayame asked"

"For as long as needed"

All seven smiled a bit and hugged him a bit tighter.

 _ **The days that followed, Jūshirō spent with his aunt and great-uncle, planning his father's funeral and when he wasn't busy with that, he spent a lot of time with his siblings.**_

The funeral was traditional, held in the way Jūsanrō had wanted it.

A lot of family friends were there and once the cremation fire died down, the ashes were collected and buried at the family grave.

A photo was also put up in the shrine in the house.

As the day turned into night and it was just the family in the house, Jūshirō sat in his room with some assignments from the academy.

But his mind was on his family, especially his siblings.

They may have their aunt and great-uncle but the eight of them were technically orphans now with both their parents dead.

While he wanted to finish up the Soul Reaper academy so he had a job, he also wanted to stay at home to take care of his siblings.

He sighed and put his pen down, deciding to finish the assignments the next day.

There was a knock on his door and Hiroshi came in.

"Great-uncle"

"Are you busy Jūshirō?"

"No. I was gonna finish a few academy things but I can't get anywhere"

"Come then. Emi and I wanted to talk to you"

"Okay"

He got up and followed his great-uncle to the living room were his aunt waited.

"So what did you wanna talk about?"

"It's about the position as head of the clan, said Emi"

"Okay"

"We know that it's supposed to go to you as the oldest son but uncle and I talked about it earlier"

"The two of us will take care of all that until you graduate from the academy, said Hiroshi"

"But ..."

"No buts. Jūshirō we know you're worried about what to do now when your father is gone and we want you to finish your studies to become a Soul Reaper.

-Once you don't have the academy to worry about anymore, you can take over as the head of the clan"

Jūshirō looked at his great-uncle and his aunt who both smiled at him and it felt like a weight had been lifted off his shoulders.

He didn't have to worry about his family or his future career as a Soul Reaper.

"Thank you"


	13. The others finds out

_**After spending three weeks with his family, recovering from the loss of his father,**_ _ **Jūshirō decided to go back to the academy.**_

He made sure to leave so he would arrive when everyone else was in class since he wanted to surprise the others.

But before doing anything else, he was gonna go see Yamamoto.

Jūshirō knocked on the door to the office and waited for the okay to come in.

"Ah Jūshirō, you're back"

"Yes. I arrived just a few minutes ago"

"How's your family?"

"Better. It was hard the first couple of days but at least we have each other"

"That's good.

-So you're ready to get back to classes?"

"From tomorrow, yes"

"Then use this day as you want and I'll see you during Zanjutsu tomorrow"

"Yes sensei"

Jūshirō bowed before leaving the office, making his way to his room.

He walked in and found a bit of a mess in there and sighed.

 _"Shunsui is worse than Kenji and the twins sometimes when it comes to cleaning"_

He put his bag on his bed and started to clean up a bit, placing papers on their desks and putting trash in a bag to throw away later.

 _"Well, that's better._

 _-I know I was gone for three weeks but how he managed to get the room that messy in that amount of time..."_

He just shook his head with a slight smirk.

 _"Wonder what the others will think when the see that I got back without telling them"_

Voices were then heard outside and Jūshirō recognized them right away.

 _"Guess I'll find out soon"_

He sat down on his bed and waited for the door to open.

"Glad this day is over, said Shunsui"

"Stop complaining Kyōraku, said Yamato"

"Yeah, and besides..."

Masaru wasn't able to say more since he noticed Jūshirō .

"Well, welcome back Ukitake"

Jūshirō smiled and couldn't help but chuckle at the expression on Koji and Shunsui's faces.

"When did you get back, Koji asked"

"Earlier today"

"And you didn't send a message to tell us?"

"I guess I wanted to surprise you a bit"

The others looked at him and after a moment, they smiled.

"Good to have you back, said Yamato"

"Thank you"

The four of them then sat down.

"So how was everything back home, Masaru asked"

"It was hard the first days and about a week after the funeral but we had each other and that helped through the tough time"

"That's good to hear, said Yamato"

"What about that thing you said about you becoming family head, Koji asked"

"I thought I was but my aunt and great-uncle said they'll take care of everything until I graduate"

"Can they do that, Shunsui asked"

"My great-uncle is kind of the clan elder so a few decision are his to make and my aunt has helped my father many times"

"Good to hear things went well for you then, said Masaru"

"Yes. And while I love spending time with my family, especially since I'm away for long periods of time, I wanted to get back here as soon as I could.

-After all, we still have a long way to go before we're ready to become Soul Reapers"

The four all got smirks on their faces.

"And we'll all continue to fight hard in order to acchieve that, said Yamato"

"Yeah, we'll graduate and become the best Soul Reapers, said Koji"

"And we'll always have each other's backs, said Shunsui"

"Both now and after graduation, said Masaru"

Everyone held out their hands and placed them on each other.

"Because our friendship is that strong, said Jūshirō"

 _ **Next day.**_

It felt good to be back at the academy and with his friends but Jūshirō was having a bad feeling about the day since he woke up not feeling 100%.

He hadn't been outside when it was too hot or too cold and he didn't feel stressed about anything so he wasn't sure what it was coming from.

 _"It's not that bad. Probably just a one day thing so I don't think I'll have to skip class or anything"_

He got up and got ready for the day before waking Shunsui and they walked to their first class.

Later during Hakuda, Jūshirō was paired up with Koji which he felt wasn't the best since the Shiba heir usualy gets very hype during class and hits a bit harder than necessary.

" _I can't do anything against it. I just have to be careful against him"_

He managed to block and dodge Koji's kicks and puches very well until he blocked a punch and Koji was sly enough to use his other hand to hit him in the stomach, knocking the air out of him.

Jūshirō felt the coughs make their way up his throat and fell on one knee, a hand over his mouth.

Shunsui was quickly by his side, a hand on his back.

While it wasn't as bad as the last time, Shunsui could still see red drops between Jūshirō's fingers.

"Sensei permission to take him to the healers' wing"

"Granted"

Shunsui nodded and helped Jūshirō get up before they left the room.

Once out in the hallway, the dark-haired student turned to his friend.

"Do you think you can walk there or should I carry you?"

"Cough... Not... Cough... sure"

"Okay. I'll carry you there then. Everyone shoulde be in class so you don't have to worry about anyone seeing us"

He then knelt slightly in front of Jūshirō, offering to carry him on his back which would be better if anyone happened to see them.

The white-haired student got on and Shunsui started walking towards the healers' wing.

"At least is not as bad as last time"

While he couldn't see Jūshirō's fact, Shunsui knew his friend was slightly smiling.

When he found out about Jūshirō's illness and heard how others had reacted, he decided to try and ease the mood those days it took over.

If it was a joke or just a fun comment didn't matter as long as his friend smiled thanks to it.

 _ **The walk to the healers' wing wasn't long and when he walked inside, Shunsui spotted Kiyoko.**_

"Kiyoko-san"

"Ah Kyōraku, what brings you here?"

She then hears Jūshirō cough and noticed him on the other student's back.

"I see.

-What happened this time?"

"Hakuda training. A classmate hit him a bit too hard and it must have knocked the air out of him"

"Okay.

-Come this way"

Shunsui followed her into a room were he carried Jūshirō to the bed were he put him down.

"I'll wait outside"

Kiyoko nodded and Shunsui walked out of the room were he leaned against the wall opposite the door.

" _I hope none of the others noticed the blood on Jūshirō's hand when he coughed._

 _-If they did, they wanna know what happened and then, the truth about his illness will come out."_

He sighed

 _"Kuchiki might be as understanding as I was when I found out. Maybe Shihōin will as well_

 _-Shiba might overreact since it was his punch that made this happen. But he is understanding if he calms down enough"_

Kiyoko then came out of the room and smiled.

"Everything is fine.

-I want him here over the night but he can go to class tomorrow"

"Good to hear.

-Do you know what caused it?"

"He said he's been feeling well so I guess this attack came as a surprise for him"

"It did... for us both"

"I see"

Kiyoko then stepped away from the door.

"You can stay until your next class"

"Thank you"

 _ **Shunsui bowed and walked into the room**_

"Told ya it wasn't as bad as the last time"

"I still need to be here until tomorrow"

"Don't worry, I'll get you notes like last time

-But I'm wondering if any of the others saw"

"Our whole class saw me fall on my knee and cough because Shiba hit a bit too hard"

"I mean if anyone noticed the small amount of blood you coughed up back there"

"Oh... that"

Jūshirō sighed and looked down at his hands.

"I guess I should tell them the truth"

"I'm surprised we managed to keep it hidden from them this long especially with how observant Kuchiki is"

There was silence between them until Shunsui stood up.

"I guess I have to get going to the next class

-I'm not gonna say anything to the others. I'll let you tell them tomorrow"

"Thank you"

Shunsui smiled and with a see you later, he left.

 _ **He got the books he needed from his room and made his way to class**_

As he had expected, the others were at him immediatley when he came into the room.

"Before you ask anything, Ukitake is fine and will be back tomorrow"

"Good, said Masaru"

"Now, you can tell us what's going on, said Koji

-You were by his side right as he started coughing and you seemed to know what was going on"

"We saw blood on his hand but you didn't panic or anything when you saw it, said Yamato"

Shunsui sighed and sat down.

"Yes I know what happened which I why I managed to stay calm.

-I'm not gonna tell you more than that since it's up to Ukitake to tell you the rest"

The others looked at each other before Yamato and Masaru nodded.

 _ **The next day, Shunsui meet up with Jūshirō and they went to class.**_

At lunch, they sat down with the others a bit away from other students.

"So what happened yesterday, Masaru asked"

Jūshirō looked at them and sighed before telling them about his illness.

"There's nothing to cure it, Yamato asked"

"I'm afraid not, I'll live with it for the rest of my life"

"Well it explains why Kyōraku knew about it if you told him last tim it happened, said Masaru"

"But why didn't you tell the rest of us, Koji asked"

"Of the same reason I had before telling Kyōraku

-I was afraid of how you would take it knowing about my health"

The three noble heirs looked at their friend and soon, smiles crossed their faces.

"Ukitake, this isn't gonna change our friendship, said Yamato"

"We're your friends because we like your personality and how kind you are, not your health, said Koji"

"So we won't go anywhere, said Masaru"

"If anything, we know now that we don't have to worry if you don't show up to class, said Yamato"

Jūshirō looked at them and with a pat on the shoulder from Shunsui, he too smiled.


	14. Meeting the Zanpakutō

_**Time passed and as they continued their training, the five friends grew stronger and stronger.**_

 _ **During their 3rd year, Hiroshi passed away from his old age which saddened**_ _ **Jūshirō but his friends were there for him.**_

They were now 3 months into their 4th year at the academy and Jūshirō had started to hear muffled voices every now and then, especially in his dreams.

He had asked the others if that had happened to them and everyone said no.

"Maybe it's your Zanpakutō, said Masaru"

"Sensei did say that they will try and communicate with us once we've imprinted enough spirit energy onto them, said Yamato"

"Yeah, I remember that, said Koji"

"Maybe you should talk with Sensei after class this afternoon, said Shunsui"

"Good idea Shunsui, said Yamato"

Not long after the others learned the truth about Jūshirō's health, they too had requested to be called by their first names so no one in their group was called by last name anymore.

 _ **Later.**_

After their Zanjutsu class was over, Jūshirō stayed in the dojo and once everyone had left, he walked up to his teacher.

"Sensei, may I talk to you for a moment?"

"Of course Jūshirō.

-What's on your mind?"

"I've been hearing voices in my dreams and sometimes when I meditate. But they're muffled so I can't hear them that well"

Yamamoto looked at his student, stroking his mustache.

"Sounds to me like your Zanpakutō is ready to show itself to you"

"Is there anything I can do?"

"When you hear the voice, try to focus and you will eventually hear it more clearly.

-That's what I did with my Ryūjin Jakka when he tried to speak to me"

"I understand.

-Thank you sensei"

 _ **He followed his teacher's advice and tried focusing on the voices that night when he heard them in his dreams.**_

"Can you hear us?"

"Yes. I hear you"

"Yay! He can hear us"

Suddenly, Jūshirō found himself in what looked like a garden with a big pond.

"Play with us"

"Yeah let's play"

Jūshirō looked around to see where the voices came from but he couldn't see anyone.

"Okay I'll play with you but could you please show yourselves first"

"Okay"

There was a splash in the water and two young boys were suddenly standing in front of him.

"So what do you want to do?"

"How about tag, said one of them"

"Okay. But go easy on me since I can't overexert myself"

"Okay, said both"

So Jūshirō started to run around after the two until he had to sit down and catch his breath.

"You okay, one of the boys asked"

"Yes. Don't worry about me"

After a while, he stood up and looked at the two.

"I should go back now but I will be back one I figure out how to get here"

"You promise?"

"Yes. I always keep my word.

-My name is Jūshirō by the way. What's yours?"

"I'm Sōgyo, said one"

"And I'm Kotowari, said the other"

"Together we are Sōgyo No Kotowari"

"Sōgyo No Kotowari"

As he said the name, the boys smiled and took each others hands before disappearing.

A sword then appeared in Jūshirō's hand. A Katana with a red hilt and bronze guard.

 _ **He smiled and suddenly, everything around him turned black.**_

When he opened his eyes, he was back in his room and juding by how Shunsui was still asleep and that the light from outside seemed to be that of early morning, he hadn't been with the two for as long as he had expected.

Seeing no use in going back to sleep, he got up and changed to his uniform.

As he sat back down on his bed, he noticed that rather than the Asauchi leaning against the wall, it was the sword he got after meeting the boys.

It was his true Zanpakutō.

He couldn't help but smile when he thought of the reactions the others might have when he show it to them later.

Since there was still 2 hours before class started, he grabbed the book he had been reading the previous day and continued were he left off.

An hour later, he put it down.

" _Let's see how many tries it takes today"_

He got up and walked over to Shunsui's bed.

"Time to wake up Shunsui, class starts in an hour"

It looked like Shunsui was going to listen for once but in the end, he kept sleeping.

" _Even after 4 years he's hard to wake up._

 _-Guess I have no choice but to do the usual to get him up"_

Jūshirō filled a glass with a very small amount of water that he dripped onto Shunsui.

"That you keep falling for the same trick after 4 years"

"Guess I never learn.

-I don't get it how you are up so early every day"

"Try living with seven younger siblings who had a habit of waking you early and you'll know why"

A slight smirk appeared on Jūshirō's face at the look Shunsui gave him.

 _ **Later.**_

The group had just finished lunch and gotten their sword from their room before sitting down in the garden since it was time before class.

It was then the observant Masaru noticed Jūshirō's sword.

"Jūshirō has something happened to your Asauchi?"

"Yes. Last night I followed some advice sensei gave me and I finally heard the voices in my head clearly"

"So we were right about it being a Zanpakutō, said Yamato"

"Yes. I found myself in this garden and two boys appeared before me. After I had played tag for a while with them, they revealed their name and when I woke up, I found my Asauchi in this form"

"Man, I'm jealous at you Jūshirō, said Koji.

-I wanna meet my Zanpakutō too"

"You will in time Koji, said Yamato"

"Jūshirō was just lucky being the first one of us to fully hear his spirit, said Shunsui

-I've actually heard mumbling myself last night so maybe I'll be next"

"We'll see about that, said Koji"

They then made their way to Zanjutsu and as they split up into pairs to begin their training for the day, Yamamoto also noticed Jūshirō's changed sword.

"I see your meeting with your Zanpakutō went well Jūshirō"

"Yes sensei.

-I did as you told me and focused on the voices. It helped and when I could her them clearly, they showed themselves to me and told me their name"

"There were two of them?"

"Yes Sōgyo and Kotowari.

-When I said their names, they changed into this sword and when I woke up this morning, my Asauchi had changed into it"

Yamamoto nodded understanding.

"Well done"

"Thank you sensei"

"Everyone, I hope you'll work as hard as Ukitake so you all can get your true Zanpakutō"

"Yes sir"

They then began their training for the day and Yamamoto couldn't help but notice that all students seemed to be more focused after his words.

" _Seems like young Jūshirō is becoming, no... HAS become someone the other students looks up too"_

While he didn't seem like it, Yamamoto was a very observant man and had noticed a couple of things regarding the white-haired student and the Kyōraku heir.

They were not like the other students in their class.

Jūshirō may have a weak constitution due to his health but he worked just as hard as the others who turned to him for advice or help about certain classes.

Shunsui had a wild behavior especially with how he chased the female students but there was no doubt that he was inteligent and his sharp mind had no equal except for Masaru.

As he watched over the students training, his eyes went to the two friends who didn't hold back against each other. The two easily blocking and doding each others strikes

 _"I have a feeling those two will become something great one day"_


	15. Training

_**About a week after**_ _ **Jūshirō got his true Zanpakutō in Sōgyo No Kotowari, Shunsui managed to get his which was named Katen Kyōkotsu and it surprised everyone that it existed as a sword pair, a tachi and a wakazashi.**_

A couple of days after Shunsui had gotten his true Zanpakutō, the two were called to the dojo.

"I hope this isn't about some prank you've pulled again Shunsui"

"I haven't played pranks on anyone or chased the girls for that matter"

Jūshirō looked at his friend with a look that said "oh really" which made the other student chuckle.

"Okay maybe I tried chasing the girls"

The white-haired student sighed and shook his head.

"You're impossible my friend"

Shunsui smirked before looking up to see that they had reached the dojo.

They walked inside and saw Yamamoto sit with his back against them.

"We're here sensei, said Jūshirō"

"So why did you want us to come, Shunsui asked"

Yamamoto got up and looked at his two students.

"I asked the two of you to come because I wanted to talk to you both about your training"

"Our training?"

"You have both awakened your Zanpakutō which puts you a bit ahead of the others in your class.

-So starting tomorrow, the two of you will have a special Zanjutsu training with me to get the two of you used to your new blades. Especially you Shunsui since fighting with dual blades will take time to learn"

The friends looked at each other and nodded before bowing.

"We're ready for it sensei, said Jūshirō"

"Good. I won't go easy on you though"

"We didn't expect anything else old man, said Shunsui"

"Well, then I expect you two here after your final class tomorrow"

"SIR!"

 _ **Next day.**_

Their last class of the day was over and the two friends was making their way to the dojo.

"Let's see what the special training is"

"Yes"

They entered the dojo and Yamamoto stood ready.

"You showed up"

"Of course, said Shunsui"

"We do afterall want to master our new weapons, said Jūshirō"

Yamamoto nodded, pleased over the answer.

"Jūshirō, your training will be similar to what I usualy go over just a bit harder"

"Understood"

"Shunsui, your training is to first of all master how to wield a sword in your opposite hand"

"Yes sir"

So the two drew their swords, Shunsui deciding to use the smaller of his two swords and their training began.

 _ **Time passed and with each day, the two got better and better at using their new swords. Shunsui still needed to train up his left hand a bit more but he was getting there.**_

A couple of months had now passed since Jūshirō first meet Sōgyo No Kotowari.

He was currently sitting under one of the trees in the schoolyard, his Zanpakutō in his lap as he meditated.

When he opened his eyes, he was in the garden where he first had meet the two, his inner world as Yamamoto had called it.

"Yay Juu is back, said Sōgyo"

"Hello you two"

"Are you here to play, Kotowari asked"

"Why not"

"I have an idea, said Sōgyo

-If you win, we tell you our Shikai"

"Sounds okay to me.

-So what do you wanna play this time?"

"Tag, said Kotowari"

"No, we did that last time, said Sōgyo"

"Hide & seek?"

Sōgyo nodded and turned to Jūshirō.

"Is that okay?"

"Yes"

"Okay. We hide and you seek"

Jūshirō nodded and closed his eyes as he started to count and the two ran of to hide.

"20. Here I come"

He looked around at first to see possible hiding spots before starting to walk around.

" _Where could those two have gone?"_

He tried to focus to see if he could sense their spiritual pressure but had no luck.

So he started to look through the bushes and up the two trees in the area but they weren't there.

" _Think_ _Jūshirō_ _. Where could they hide around here"_

He then realized something.

 _ **"**_ _Is it that simple?"_

He walked up to the pond and saw what looked like two fishes.

"Found you"

The fish moved and the two boys appeared from the water.

"You found us, said Sōgyo"

"We thought the pond was a good hiding spot, said Kotowari"

"Well, I didn't think you would hide there at first but then I remembered that when we first meet, there was a splash in the water

-Your name also means Truth of the Pisces or twin fish. And fish like water"

The boys looked at each other and smiled"

"I think he's ready, said Sōgyo"

"We did promise, said Kotowari"

They then turned to Jūshirō.

"When you call our names, I will rise like a mighty wave to shield you, said Sōgyo"

"And I will strike as fast as a lightning, said Kotowari"

Jūshirō looked at the two a bit confused but he soon seemed to understand.

"Okay. Thank you Sōgyo No Kotowari"

 _ **He then found himself back in the real world.**_

"Hey Jūshirō!"

He looked up and saw Shunsui come towards him.

"Hi Shunsui"

"Have you forgotten that since Kidō class was canceled, old-man Yama put in extra training for us"

"Oh yeah.

-Let's not keep him waiting then"

He got up and they walked to the dojo.

"You two ready for today's training?"

"Yes sir"

"Good. Today I want you two to spar with each other"

The two nodded and began their training, attacking and doding each other's attacks until Jūshirō heard Sōgyo No Kotowari's voice in his mind.

" **Do it, said Kotowari"**

 **"We did tell you what to do, said S** **ō** **gyo"**

Jūshirō smiled and leaped back to dodge an attack before grabbing his Zanpakutō with both hands.

"All waves rise now and become my shield, lightning strike now and become my blade... Sōgyo No Kotowari"

The single sword slowly split into two thinner blades with a second blade coming out from around the middle and bending downwards towards the hilt.

A red rope with five silver talismans connected them to each other.

All three looked at the swords in surprise.

"So you have achieved your Shikai Jūshirō, said Yamamoto"

He walked closer to his student and looked at the blades.

"This is the first time I've seen dual Zanpakutō. Both for sealed form and Shikai

-You will now have to learn new styles of fighting"

"Yes sir"

"Just you wait Jūshirō, I'll get my Shikai soon enough and catch up with you, said Shunsui"

"Right"

 _ **For the upcoming weeks, Jūshirō**_ _ **practiced with his Shikai, trying to get the hang of fighting with two swords.**_

 _ **The trickiest was the rope that connected the blades which was something for him to get used to so he wouldn't step on it or so it wouldn't get tangled.**_

This day, he was in the dojo, training under Yamamoto's watchful eyes when Shunsui came.

"You're late Shunsui"

"Sorry sensei but I was having a conversation with my Zanpakutō and she sure took her time.

-But I did get her to tell me about my Shikai"

"Let's see it then"

Shunsui nodded and drew his swords.

"Flower wind rage and flower god roar. Heavenly wind rage and heavenly demon sneer... Katen Kyōkotsu"

The tachi, wakazashi sword pair changed to a pair of huge black curved Chinese schimitars with a red tassel hanging from the handles.

"Impressive

-Well then, now when we know that you both have dual Shikai, it will be easier for me to make the right training exercies for you two"

"We're ready for anything sensei, said Jūshirō"

"I hope you are cause your training will only get tougher from here"

"We can handle it. Right Jūshirō?"

"Yes"

"Then starting next week, these training sessions will be for mastering your dual Shikai"

"Sir!"


	16. Graduation

_**More time passed and one after another, the rest of the students awakened their Zanpakut**_ _ **ō and began the same hard training as the two friends to master them.**_

 _ **Before they knew it, they had reached their final year at the academy and graduation was closing in.**_

"Can you guys believe our time here is almost over, Yamato asked"

"It's hard to believe, said Koji"

"But we still have one final assignment, said Masaru"

"You mean the Hollow training thing, Shunsui asked"

"Yes and we will do it against low level Hollows that the instructors has managed to capture, said Jūshirō"

"Seriously?"

"Didn't you listen at all to what Yamamoto-sensei said earlier today when he informed us about the assignment, said Yamato"

"The academy has picked a big area for us to practice team combat against Hollows that are weaker so we won't get harmed, Masaru explained"

"Oh, guess I forgot about it, said Shunsui"

The other four just shook their heads.

 _ **A few days later.**_

All 6th year students stood gathered before Yamamoto.

"Today is the day for your final exam. Get through this and the life of a Soul Reaper won't be as hard for you

-This exercis will not only test your skills in combat against Hollows but also your teamwork. That is why all of you have been divided into groups so find your teammates by finding people with the same symbol as you on the papers you were given when arriving here"

All students pciked up pieces of paper from their pockets and looked at the symbols drawn on them.

"Looks like the three of us are on the same team, said Yamato"

"Seems that way, said Shunsui"

"And it seems like Koji and Masaru are on a team with Kazuhiro, said Jūshirō"

The other two looked towards their friends and saw that he was right.

Yamamoto then cleared his throat to get their attention.

"Now when everyone has foudn their teammates, I will explain the exercise

-The area we're standing infront of has been filled with low-level Hollows. Your job is to work together in your teams and get rid of them. Is that clear?"

"Yes sir!"

"Then let's begin your final exam"

 _ **The entrance behind Yamamoto opened and all students rushed inside in their respective groups.**_

"Let's go you two, said Yamato"

The other two nodded and they began to Flash Step to go faster and after a while, they found a group of Hollows.

"Ready, Jūshirō asked"

"Yeah, said the others"

Jūshirō and Shunsui then drew their swords and activated their Shikai before running towards the Hollows.

One of the Hollows began to charge up a Cero as they got closer and fired it.

Jūshirō got infront of the others and used Sōgyo No Kotowari's ability to absorb it and send it back with increased speed and pressure, shattering the Hollow's mask.

Shunsui then jumped up and used a technique called Bushōgoma to send two wind blades towards another Hollow enveloping it in a strong tornado like wind.

"Takaoni!"

Shunsui appeared in the air above the Hollow, moving both swords down to cut the mask.

"Shunkō!"

A white energy surged around Yamato's back and shoulders like water and he shattered the last Hollow's mask with a powerful punch.

As he landed on the ground, the energy disappeared and he turned to the other two who put their swords back in their scabbards.

"What was that technique Yamato, Jūshirō asked"

"It's called Shunkō, a mix between Kidō and Hakuda

-Father taught me how to use it during our last break but I've still got a bit to go before I can fully control it"

"Seemed to me like you had a lot of control over it, said Shunsui

-I mean, you got rid of that Hollow quite fast"

"You guys did a good job too, your Shikai are incredible"

The two smiled before Jūshirō started to walk.

"Let's keep going. I can sense more Hollows around here"

"You got it, said Shunsui"

"Lead the way, said Yamato"

 _ **The three of them began to Flash Step in the direction they felt the Hollows and after defeating some of them, they found Masaru, Koji and Kazuhiro.**_

"Hey guys, said Koji"

"How is the exam going for you, Kazuhiro asked"

"We've defeated about nine Hollows so far, said Shunsui"

"Nine! You must be good at finidng them"

"Yeah, we've only found four, said Koji"

"Thank Jūshirō and how well he can sense the Hollows, said Yamato"

Suddenly, they heard a loud roar and saw two big Hollows not that far away from them.

"Those are some large Hollows, said Kazuhiro"

"What should we do, Koji asked

-Fight them?"

"Maybe if there had only been one but two of that size is too much for even the six of us, said Masaru"

"We'll have to do something, said Shunsui

-We are the strongest in our class so if we work together we can hold them back long enough for someone to notice and inform Yamamoto-sensei"

"Shunsui is right, said Jūshirō

-We can't let those Hollows walk around freely"

The others looked at each other before nodding.

"Let's go, said Yamato"

They Flash Stepped over to the Hollows were they all drew their Zanpakutō.

"All waves rise now and become my shield, lightning strike now and become my blade. Sōgyo No Kotowari!"

"Flower wind rage and flower god roar. Heavenly wind rage and heavenly demon sneer. Katen Kyōkotsu"

"Entangle Tsutaurushi"

"Rage like the waves Uzumaki"

"Hit hard Raimei"

"Freeze Mō Fubuki"

With all their Shikai activated, the surrounded the Hollows.

Masaru who's Shikai took the form of a thorny whip hit the ground with it and vines rose up, binding the legs and arms of the Hollows.

"Nice Masaru, said Yamato"

He raised his own Zanpakutō towards the sky, summoning dark clouds before lightning struck the two Hollows.

"Allright"

"Don't celebrate yet Shihōin, said Kazuhiro"

One of the Hollows got its arm free and long claws appeared on its had which it used to cut off the vines holding it down.

It then tried to attack them.

"Hyōheki!

Kazuhiro struck his Zanpakutō into the ground and a wall of ice rose up, acting as a shield.

The Hollow that was still stuck then fired a Cero at them but Jūshirō quickly got infront of the others and fired it back.

It managed to knock the Hollow back and Jūshirō got down on one knee, panting.

"You okay, Shunsui asked"

"Yes. That Cero was just stronger than I expected"

He got back up as Shunsui looked at the Hollow and as it got back up, he saw a crack in the mask.

"The mask on that one is cracked so let's get it!"

"Right!"

 _ **Everyone went towards the Hollow with the cracked mask.**_ __

Jūshirō stayed on the ground and made cuts in its legs so it lost balance as the others leaped up to reach the mask.

Masaru used his whip and wrapped it around the Hollow's neck to keep its head still.

"Aisuburēdo!"

"Sandākurappu"

"Taifū Nami"

Kazuhiro, Yamato and Koji combined their attacks and it made the crack on the Hollow's mask even bigger.

"Now Shunsui, Koji shouted"

The others quickly got onto the ground as Shunsui leaped towars the mask.

"Irooni White!"

Swinging his swords, Shunsui attacked the Hollow were the crack was, fully shattering the mask.

He then landed next to the others.

"That's one down at least, said Masaru"

"Yeah but it took a bit of our energy to do it, said Koji"

"Then let's try to take the other one down and if we can't, then at least we might be able to hold it back, said Jūshirō"

The others nodded in agreement and they attacked the other Hollow.

 _ **But it was stronger than the other and it took a lot of energy from the students to try and defeat it.**_

As the Hollow knocked them away, everyone were on their knees, panting.

But then, a burst of flames came out of nowhere and surrounded the Hollow in a tornado of fire.

Shunsui was the one able to look up and he saw Yamamoto stand between them and the Hollow.

"Sensei"

"At ease. You can all rest now when I'm here"

Yamamoto then turned towards the Hollow.

"Taimatsu"

With a simple swing of his sword, Yamamoto made more flames surround the Hollow, burning it until only ashes remained.

He put his Zanpakutō back in the scabbard and turned to his students who had all passed out in exhaustion.

 _ **Three days later.**_

Jūshirō opened his eyes and looked around, immediatly recognizing the room as a part of the healers' wing.

" _What happened? How did I get back here?"_

He slowly sat up and saw that in the three other beds in the room were Shunsui, Masaru and Yamato.

They soon woke up as well and were as confused as him about being back at the academy.

"How did we get back, Yamato asked"

"I don't know, said Masaru"

"The last thing I remember is Yamamoto-sensei showing up, said Shunsui"

The door then opened and Yamamoto entered the room.

"Ah I'm glad you're all awake"

"Sensei, what happened, Jūshirō asked"

"A few of your classmates saw you fight two big Hollows and quickly informed me about it.

-By the time I reached you all, you were barely conscious but only one Hollow was standing rather then two as I had been informed. I defeated it and made sure you all were brought here"

"So where is Koji and Kazuhiro, Shunsui asked"

"In another room, all of you couldn't fit together in one room so they were placed next door.

-But don't worry. I've already talked to them and they are awake"

He looked at the four of them before a slight smile crossed his face.

"You all did very well out there when facing those Hollows even though you probably knew it would be hard for you to handle.

-You all worked together and used your powers wisely. For that, all six of you will be given the higest score on your final exam"

The four friends couldn't help but smile at each other.

"Thank you sir, said Masaru"

"You all deserve it after that battle.

-I have no doubt that you all will become great Soul Reapers"

That praise from the teacher meant a lot for them and all four bowed their heads in respect and gratitude.

 _ **They stayed in the healers' wing for three more days so they could fully recover from their encounter with the big Hollows.**_

 _ **At their graduation ceremony, they took up the top six spots in their class.**_

 _ **It was now that their lives as Soul Reapers would fully begin.**_

 _Author's notes_

 _Hyōheki = Ice wall_

 _Aisuburēdo = Ice Blade_

 _Sandākurappu = Thunder Clap_

 _Taifū Nami = Typhon Wave_

Tsutaurushi is the name of Masaru's Zanpakutō and translates to poison ivy.

Uzumaki is Koji's Zanpakutō and its name mean whirlpool

Raimei is Yamato's and its name translates to thunder roar

Mō Fubuki: Kazuhiro's Zanpakutō and means blizzard


	17. Tragic news

_**After their graduation, the friends fully began their lives as Soul Reapers.**_

 _ **First thing Jūshirō**_ _ **did was taking his rightful place as the head of his clan, same with Koji and Masaru.**_

 _ **Jūshirō**_ _ **and Shunsui also continued their training under Yamamoto on their sensei's request.**_

Some time had now passed since their graduation and the two friends were training in their sensei's dojo. They had both become quite the masters in fighting with dual blades during the time that had passed since their graduation.

"Working hard both of you"

The two turned around to see Yamamoto stand in the door but their eyes quickly went to the blood on his face and a fresh wound across the scar on his head.

"Sensei what happened, Jūshirō asked"

"Chōjirō Sasakibe is what happened"

"He's never managed to hurt you like this before, said Shunsui"

"Well, that boy has gotten stronger"

Yamamoto sat down with his students in front of him.

"Sasakibe has achieved his Bankai"

"What?!"

"A mouth ago I told him that if he could achieve Bankai and defeat me, he might have a future as my right hand man.

-I had actually forgot it but when he showed up this morning and reminded me about it. I remembered that it had been a while since he last showed up."

"So this wound is from his Bankai, Jūshirō asked"

"Yes. His Bankai is lightning based and one of the lightnings he sent towards me made this mark but he was unable to defeat me

-It was a baby's Bankai and he has a long way to go before it's fully mastered"

He then looked at the two friends.

"Once you two begin your training to achieve Bankai, remember that it will take time for you to master it"

"How long, Shunsui asked"

"Most Soul Reapers has it fully mastered after 10 years but it also depends on the powers you will have"

"We understand sensei, said Jūshirō

-But we still have a long way to go before we even begin training to achieve Bankai"

"Indeed, first you two need to fully learn all abilities of your Zanpakutō which we're not sure how long it will take.

-But once you've mastered all your Shikai abilities, we will take it to the next step and begin Bankai training"

He then stood up and began to walk towards the door.

"You two can take a break for now, you've worked hard today"

The two friends stood up and bowed in gratitude.

"Thank you sensei"

They then left the dojo and decided to get something to eat.

"That Sasakibe must be strong since he managed to injure old-man Yama, said Shunsui"

"And with a Bankai that's not at full power yet at that"

The dark-haired man looked up at the sky.

"Do you think we'll that strong one day Jūshirō?"

"Who knows. Maybe we will if we keep up our training and master our own Bankai

-But like sensei said, it will take time"

"Yeah"

 _ **After that day, Yamamoto took on the name Genryūsai due to the new scar he now had on his head.**_

 _ **Jūshirō**_ _ **and Shunsui kept on training under him while also carrying out their duties as Soul Reapers along with their friends.**_

It was morning and Jūshirō was on his way to his training with Shunsui.

As he walked, he passed some older Soul Reapers.

"Hey, did you hear that the Head of the Ise clan was executed yesterday?"

Jūshirō had to stop when he heard that.

" _Ise. That's the clan Shunsui's sister-in-law is from"_

He decided to hide around a corner and listen to the conversation.

"What made them execute the head to that priestess clan?"

"Apparently she lost a sacred treasure that belonged to the clan and Central 46 decided to have her executed for that crime"

Jūshirō's eyes widened when he heard that.

" _I wonder if Shunsui knows about this"_

He Flash Stepped to the dojo to get there faster and found his friend inside.

"Shunsui"

"What's the matter Jūshirō?"

The white-haired man took a moment to catch his breath before looking at his best friend.

"Your sister-in-law, she was from the House of Ise wasn't she?"

"Yeah. Head of the clan since she returned after my brother's passing.

-How come you ask?"

Jūshirō sighed.

"She's been executed"

"Executed?"

"Yeah. Central 46 appears to have made their ruling on charges relating to the loss of a sacred treasure...

-And the execution was held yesterday"

It made Jūshirō feel bad to see the expression on his friend's face.

"Sorry. Maybe I should have kept it to myself"

Shunsui just waved a bit with his hand.

"Nah, I'd much rather hear it sooner than later"

Jūshirō simply nodded.

"How did your siblings react?"

The white-haired man looked at his friend.

"What do you mean?"

"After your parents died, how did they take it?"

He quickly understood why Shunsui asked him that, because of how his niece probably would feel right now.

"Well, Ayame, the twins and Kenji were really small when our mother passed away so I don't think they understood really what was going on and why she wasn't there anymore.

-Tatsuya, Izumi and Ryouta were more understanding and took it as hard as you'd expect. Especially Izumi who was probably closest to her after me"

"And when your father died?"

Jūshirō chuckled a little.

"You remember how I took it, right?"

"Yeah. You had a very sad look in your eyes which was unusual to see on you but you didn't shed tears or anything"

"I knew I had to be strong for my siblings' sake.

-They were all devestated over losing our father especially the four youngest since they knew him better than mom"

"I see"

"But even though they were both gone, the eight of us still had each other, our aunt and great-uncle.

-But now with both of them gone, I'm the only one they have left"

"I have noticed that you always send a lot of money we get away.

-To your family I assume"

"Yes. Since I'm the oldest, head of the family and the one who works, I send about half of the salary we get as Soul Reapers to them

-I've done it since graduation"

"So that's how it is"

Jūshirō nodded and stood up, holding out his hand.

"With that little talk over... Are you ready to start training?"

"Yeah. I needed that talk

-Thanks Jūshirō"

Jūshirō smiled at his best friend and when the dark-haired man got up, he patted his shoulder.

While Jūshirō thought he was lucky to have Shunsui as his friend, Shunsui felt just as lucky to call Jūshirō his friend.


	18. Gotei 13

_**A couple of years had passed since the execution of Shunsui's sister-in-law.**_

 _ **Said Soul Reaper was currently on his way to the Ukitake estate. Jūshirō**_ _ **had fallen ill the previous day so Shunsui wanted to check on him, as well as tell him about a rumor he had heard.**_

He reached the house and saw a few of Jūshirō's siblings in the garden, Tatsuya being the first one to notice him.

"Oh, hi Shunsui"

"Been a while Tatsuya"

"I has.

-You here to see Juu?"

"If he's well enough"

"He is. It was a milder attack so you can go inside.

-You remember where his room is?"

"I do"

He walked inside where he took off his sandals before walking through the house until he reached the right door where he lightly knocked.

"You awake Jūshirō?"

"Yes Shunsui

-You can come in"

Shunsui opened the door, walked inside and sat down cross-legged next to his friend's futon.

"So what brings you here?"

"Heard from Old-man Yama that you got sick last night so I wanted to see how you were feeling"

"I've been worse"

Shunsui couldn't help but chuckle.

"At least you're not as bad as the first time I saw it"

"You're right"

By the way, you haven't heard the rumors have you?"

"What rumors?"

"Old-man Yama is apparently gathering some people to form a more organized force of Soul Reapers"

"Organized force?"

"From what I heard, his plan is to form 13 groups for all Soul Reapers to join & each group will have a leader of some sort

-But what bothers me is the type of people he's recruited"

"Something wrong about them?"

"Some of them have killing records and I don't mean of Hollows... they've killed people

-In other words, they're murders and brutal killers"

"What?!"

Jūshirō then burst in a coughing fit due to his slight yell.

Shunsui quickly moved to sit next to him and drew circles on his friend's back with his palm.

"Easy buddy"

He kept moving his hand across Jūshirō's back until the coughs died down and then handed him a tissue from the box next to them so Jūshirō could wipe away the small amount of blood he had on his lips.

"Sorry. Maybe I should have waited to tell you until you were better"

"No, it's okay. I'm grateful you came to tell me"

"If you say so"

Shunsui moved so he sat next to the futon again.

"So do you know how it's gonna work?"

"Not really. Fromt he rumors, Central 46 still has to approve it"

"They're probably not gonna like the idea of Sensei gathering killers from Rukongai"

"Guess we just have to wait and see what happens if they accept it"

"Yes" 

_**A week later.**_

The two friends were doing some light practice when Yamamoto entered the room.

"Working hard you two"

"Yes sir, said Jūshirō"

"I hope you're not pushing yourself too hard"

"Don't worry old-man Yama, we're just doing some light training since Jūshirō just got back after being sick"

"Well, take a break. I wanna talk to the two of you"

They followed Yamamoto to another room where they got some tea.

"I assume you have heard the rumors going around"

"About the organization you're planning to create, said Shunsui

-We've heard it"

"Is it true sensei that you've recruited killers from Rukongai, Jūshirō asked"

"Yes. I've searched Soul Society for strong people to lead the organization I wanna form.

-The heads of the great noble clans have agree to join along with two other strong Soul Reapers but I still needed to find a few more people"

"So you decided to search Rukongai"

"Yes. I'd heard about strong warriors causing trouble in the higher districts so I went to investigate it"

"How did you manage to make killers agree to this, Shunsui asked"

"At first they refused but some agree after they felt the power of my spirit energy and my promise to let them handle things the way they want.

-Those who wanted to fight had no chance against Ryūjin Jakka's flames"

"Nothing beats you old-man Yama"

"You need more that thugs who haven't even awakened their Zanpakutō fully to take me down"

The two friends couldn't help but chuckle slightly at that statement since they knew how strong their teacher was.

"Central 46 have not agree yet but it's just a matter of time before they do"

"What makes you so sure sensei, Jūshirō asked"

"When I told them my reasons for recruiting these people, a lot of them seemed to understand

-And you two don't have to worry since you will stay by my side"

"Yes sir, said both"

 _ ****_

 _ **A few days later, Yamamoto's idea got approved by Central 46 and work began to remodel the 13 biggest buildings in Seireitei into working barracks for the Soul Reapers.**_

It was now the day the captains of the divisions officialy were going to be instated and the two friends were standing on a balcony outside the 1st division.

It was the division Yamamoto was going to lead and had been built next to the big hill where the Sokyokū was, giving it a view over the Seireitei.

"Well, sensei got what he wanted, said Jūshirō"

"Yeah, his organization has taken form"

They looked on the inside of their uniforms where a Chrysanthemum was emblazoned into the fabric, showing what division they belonged to.

Voices was then heard and they turned around to see Yamamoto come walking along with two others.

They quickly stood straight and bowed.

"At ease you two"

The two lifted their heads and looked at their teacher, then at the people next to him.

"Boys, this is Tenjirō Kirinji and Yachiru Unohana. They will lead the 4th and 11th respectively"

-These two are my students, Jūshirō Ukitake and Shunsui Kyōraku"

Jūshirō couldn't help but notice that when Yamamoto said his name, Kirinji looked at him as if he recognized him.

Yachiru then excused herself and left with Yamamoto but Kirinji stayed behind.

"That illness still brothering ya?"

Jūshirō's eyes widened in surprise.

"How did you...?"

"I'm not surprised you don't remember. You were still a little kid back then

-I'm the one who gave your father that medicine for your worse attacks"

"That was you, captain Kirinji"

"Yepp, meet your father one day many years ago and saw that he seemed worried. I asked him what bothered him and he told me about ya, about how sick you were

-Came with him to your home and used my healing powers on ya to help. I came back a few days later with a medicine I made based on the sympthoms your parents told me about"

"I see

-Well, your medicine really helps during my worse attacks. But I'm starting to run out of it since father never had a chance to tell me who made it before he died"

"Good to hear you're still using it

-And when it runs out, don't hesitate coming to me for more or send someone to get more for ya if you're not well"

"Understood

-Thank you"

Jūshirō bowed in respect and Kirinji just smirk.

"Just doing my job as a healer.

-Take care you two"

He then walked away, leaving the two friends.

 _ **And so, the organization that would soon be known as the Gotei 13 was formed and ready to take care of the Soul Society.**_


End file.
